


Together We Are Stronger

by railou



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions, Pocket Monsters: X & Y | Pokemon X & Y Versions
Genre: Action/Adventure, Ash can't catch a break, Evil people - Freeform, Family, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-13
Updated: 2019-11-12
Packaged: 2020-01-12 16:02:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 65,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18449924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/railou/pseuds/railou
Summary: Ash is having the time of his life in Alola. Meanwhile, something dark is brewing back in Kalos. Greninja stumbles upon something terrifying and tries to warn Ash. It all gets much worse from there before it gets any better.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome!
> 
> I'm pretty excited about this fic. I have a few chapters written already, and will try to update regularly. I was pretty out of practice with writing when I started, so the beginning might be a bit stiffly written. It gets better, I promise!
> 
> BTW, the Ash-Greninja bond-phenomenon described during the fic is only my own interpretation of how it works.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!<3

There it was.

The place it had been looking for. The mysterious, secluded compound from where humans dressed in grey were occasionally coming out and disappearing into the surrounding forests. The place must have been operational for a while now – it looked new but certainly not unfinished. It was only one floor tall, but it was very likely there would be many more levels underground. The low ceiling and unassuming brownish gray color of the walls made the building very difficult to spot.

Uphill in its hiding spot, Greninja sat down and frowned. Finally, it had found the origin place of the grey people who – at least that's what Greninja suspected – had been causing trouble all over Kalos. But just seeing the compound hadn't answered any of its question, only created more. Greninja leaned against a tree, stretching its weary legs straight in front of it, settling in for a long wait.

After a few days of observing it had become obvious that everything about this place was organized to the maximum efficiency. Every night, a small group of humans would run into the forest and usually return the next morning, carrying large bags, metal boxes or other loads. Greninja didn't know for certain what they were collecting during the nights, but it had its suspicions and they weren't anything good. It just had to prove them right.

 

* * *

 

By the evening of the fifth day Greninja was getting restless. It hadn't yet seen anything that would prove these people were criminals, but it didn't know what else it could do by itself against this big of an operation. It needed some advice. And there was only one person in the world it could ask right there and then.

Reluctantly, Greninja closed its eyes, focusing its mind, and reached out to Ash.

It had been a long time since they had connected on purpose, and it took a while until it started to feel the familiar hum of Ash's mind.

And then it wasn't a hum anymore, it was a crash. A flood.

The thoughts and feelings that poured out of Ash were strange and confused, somewhat disconnected. Greninja felt overwhelmed and struggled to focus. It felt like it was drowning, the incoherence from Ash unbearable. Greninja fell to the ground, shaking and panting, and forced the connection to break.

Minutes later, only after it had completely calmed down, it understood. Ash had been sleeping.

With this distance, the bond connection had always been quite unstable and weak, and even that was when both of them were focusing on sustaining it. Usually they could share a few thoughts and a visual of their surroundings, not much else. It was far from the absolute harmony it felt with Ash when they were battling together.

No, that was something else. This, however, had been a complete disaster.

Greninja wondered what time it was in Alola, and if it had unintentionally woken Ash up in the middle of the night. At least it had to have disturbed his sleep. Focusing on the connection took huge amounts of energy, especially when it didn't work quite right. Greninja could feel the exhaustion in its bones. It was frustrated by its failure – it was clear it would be on its own for now.

Defeated, Greninja watched the compound for a while longer, but there was nothing going on. Its eyes drooped, and it settled against the now very familiar tree. It wouldn't hurt to sleep for a few hours, right?

 

* * *

 

Greninja woke up to a loud scream.

It rushed up, leaning to watch over the surrounding rocks down to the compound. It was early morning, the light just beginning to show over the low mountains, lighting the area in an almost eerie way, casting long shadows across the ground. And right in the middle of the grounds, Greninja could see what was causing the trouble.

Another greninja, weak and beaten, had broken out of one of the human's bags and was trying to run away.

A group of people gathered around it, taking battle stances and calling out their pokemon. The wild greninja attacked the group with water shuriken, but it didn't have its full strength and the attack was easily deflected. One of the humans called out a giant pangoro. It seemed obvious the fight was going to be over before it had even started.

But Greninja wasn't just going to watch its own get beaten and taken prisoner.

It leaped over the rocks, rushing down the mountain side at full speed. When it was near but not yet spotted by the humans, it called up double team, creating multiple copies of itself. That's when it got the attention and the group turned to watch it approach. As it got even closer, it could see the fear on the humans' faces, and the relief on the greninja's. The group scattered, and few of the humans even ran away shouting.

Greninja dropped the double team. It threw the shuriken from its back with full power, hitting the pangoro full on. The fighting pokemon fell back, and the captured greninja had a chance to jump back and out of the way. Greninja slid in front of it, ready for a battle.

That was when something flashed in the low morning light.

Something was flying towards it.

Greninja only had time to raise its hands for a move, but it was too late. The metal circle snapped around its waist and locked up tight, releasing an electric current so strong it forced Greninja to its knees. It struggled and tried to pull on the metallic band, but it wouldn't move. The greninja behind it, the one it had tried to protect, had also been locked up with similar band. It lay on the ground, unconscious.

A man approached.

Furious, Greninja turned to face him.

It was ready to get up and fight despite the electric band. It could, if it had to.

Then the shadow fell of from the man's face and revealed someone Greninja had thought – hoped, more than anything – it would never see again.

"Well well, if it isn't the infamous Greninja", drawled Lysandre, a pleased grin stretching his newly scarred face. "But where is our dear boy Ash?"


	2. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> First of all, thank you so much for the positive feedback so far!
> 
> I also wanted to specify that time-wise this story happens sometime around the time when the class travels to Kanto in the series. So Lycanroc has evolved etc, but there isn't any ultra guardians stuff going on.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Professor Kukui was already halfway done with preparing breakfast when he saw Ash finally crawling down from the loft. He called good morning, but only heard grumbling as an answer. Kukui shrugged in mild amusement. Ash was usually quite hyper from the moment he woke up, but today was apparently different story. Still smiling, Kukui brought the plates to the table. He took a good look at Ash and stopped.

Ash looked completely, utterly exhausted.

His hair was more of a mess than usual, eyes reddish and posture slumped. He sat quietly on the couch, staring vacantly at the two Luvdisc who were idly swimming in their tank. At first, Kukui figured Ash must have been running outside through the night against his best advice, but quickly scrapped that theory. Pikachu seemed well rested, and Kukui couldn't imagine Ash going out without his best friend.

Kukui set the plates on the table and sat down opposite of Ash. "What's with you, Ash?" he questioned kindly. "Did you sleep at all? You aren't sick, are you?"

Ash turned to face him and forced a tired smile. "Oh, don't worry Professor, I'm not sick", he said and began on his breakfast. After a few bites of food, his smile got more real. "Wow, so good!"

Kukui waited for a moment longer for any explanation, but it seemed Ash wasn't going to tell him. He seemed fine now, but Kukui could see Pikachu too, instead of munching down its breakfast, was watching Ash a little bit more intensely than usual. Kukui let Ash eat for a while, but when he started to slow down, Kukui prompted: "So, how come you seem so tired today? I hope you weren't staying up during the night?"

Ash paused, frowned. He set his spoon down and rubbed his eyes. "No, I- I just had a really weird dream", he eventually said. All the earlier enthusiasm was gone, and the vacant look was creeping back into his eyes. Pikachu jumped on his lap, whispering a quiet "Pikaa…". Ash stared at his partner, petting its sides gently. When he continued, his voice was so quiet Kukui barely heard him. "I think it was… you know - I felt…" Pikachu nodded like it understood something. Ash took a deep breath and grinned. "I dunno, Professor. It was just a strange dream!"

He jumped up. "Oh man, I really should get ready! I don't wanna be late from school!" Looking everywhere but at Kukui, he ran off and up the ladder, starting to prepare himself and his pokemon for the day. Kukui looked after him in mild concern.

He was finishing putting away dishes when he thought he heard Ash's low voice coming from the loft.

"Yeah, Pikachu", he was saying. "I think it was Greninja… No, I'm not sure. It was so weird! I was just sleeping, and then it was like _whoosh_! There were all these images and thoughts in my head and I felt like I was gonna puke…" Kukui could hear Pikachu speaking frantically for a moment until Ash continued: "I'm okay, Pikachu. I dunno what it wanted, it was too confusing! I don't think it was anything too serious. It didn't seem hurt or anything like that. Hey Rowlet, I'm gonna put you in my bag now!"

Kukui frowned. Something was definitely going on with Ash. He might need to pay a little extra attention to him for now.

 

* * *

 

Three hours later, Ash was trying his best not to fall asleep in the middle of the class.

He was feeling a lot better than when he first woke up that morning, but there was still a constant nagging feeling in the back of his mind that Greninja might be in trouble. After Greninja and Ash had separated in Kalos, they had only used the bond connection two times; first time was when Ash let Greninja know he was going to be living in Alola. Few months later, Greninja informed Ash that the trouble with the Giant Rock and its remaining roots seemed to be over.

In conclusion, they only did it when it was absolutely necessary.

And last night, Greninja had attempted it once again.

They had perfected the bond phenomenon back in Kalos, and Greninja was able to stay in Ash-Greninja form without any effort. But when they actively used the connection, it suddenly felt similar to when they were battling together. All at once, they were stronger. They could see through each other eyes, feel each other thoughts. It was serenity and chaos at the same time. And it always left them absolutely, completely worn out.

Ash didn't fully understand how it worked. And neither had Professor Sycamore, not really. But it was instinctual to Ash and Greninja. But this time… Greninja had rushed into the connection, not realizing Ash was asleep before it was too late. Ash was sure it had affected Greninja the same way it had him. So as curious and impatient as he was to find out what was going on, he knew it would be better to wait until the next day to try again.

"Ash? Are you feeling all right?" asked Professor Kukui. Ash jumped up on his seat. He hadn't realized he had been zoning out during a class.

"Yeah, you looked kinda sleepy just then", teased Sophocles. "Pretty identical to Rowlet there."

On Ash's desk, Rowlet happily slept on.

Ash grinned and rubbed his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry! I guess I'm still pretty tired. I didn't sleep too good."

Mallow turned sideways on her seat and leaned in in interest. "Oh? What kept you up?"

"Aw, did you have a bad dream?" joked Lana, making a mock sad face.

"Hey, everyone has bad dreams sometimes", commented Lillie quietly.

"I bet he was training through the night like an idiot", grumbled Kiawe. He raised his chin and straightened his back. "You know, my grandfather always said: one should dedicate their nights to resting and recharging, and their days to training and self-improvement. That is the best way to get stronger!"

Lana rolled her eyes. Ash really wanted to raise to the bait but was too exhausted to. Instead, he turned back to Professor Kukui and found him watching him closely. Ash shrugged, still embarrassed. "I'm sorry Professor, I'll try to pay attention."

Kukui didn't break his stare. "Maybe we should have a small break", he said instead. "It's been a long lesson. Let's go outside for a minute and get some fresh air and exercise. Everyone, be back in ten minutes!"

Relieved to get a break, the kids, followed by the Professor, quickly filed out of the class room. Ash hung back, hunched over his desk, pretending to read the current chapter from their study material. Out of nowhere, he had started getting some intense feelings from Greninja. Not yet anything visual or clear, but he could tell it was agitated and preparing for a battle.

Trough the confusion, Ash noticed Pikachu was watching him. It had hopped on the desk, almost standing on the book Ash was trying and failing to focus on. Ash attempted a reassuring smile, but his heart was beating a mile a minute and he could _feel_ Greninja charging into a fight.

"Pika, Pikapi…" murmured Pikachu, sounding worried. It nudged his hand and Ash realized he was clenching his fists so tightly his fingernails were biting into his palms. He tried to relax his tense shoulders, but it felt like he wasn't completely in control of his own body anymore.

"Somethings wrong", he whispered. Pikachu perked up, leaning closer. "Greninja's… it was fine a minute ago but now… it's fighting-"

Suddenly, there came a voice right beside him. "What is going on, Ash? Who is this Greninja?"

Ash startled so badly he physically jumped from his chair and backed off. The chair clattered to the floor. Ash was few steps away when he realized it was just Kukui, hovering over him visibly concerned. He could see the Professor first drawing back in shock, and then ducking his head and opening his arms in a reassuring way – like Ash was a wild animal. "Ash?" he asked, his voice suddenly very gentle.

Ash felt terrible. He was also way too disoriented to have this conversation right now. "It's… Professor, it's fine!" he blurted, backing away again. "I just need a- a minute…"

He turned on his heels and took a step – and stumbled.

His knees hit the floor and all breath was knocked from his body.

At first, irrationally, he thought Pikachu had hit him with a thunderbolt.

But that had never been _this_ painful.

When he forced his eyes open, he could see Professor Kukui kneeling in front of him, talking frantically. He could feel Pikachu pushing on his leg. But there was no air in his lungs and no way to control his convulsing limbs.

So, when Greninja initiated the bond connection, there was no available decision for him to make. Ash's brain gladly accepted the escape – to shut this world off and move on to watch the world through Greninja's eyes.

 

* * *

 

Kukui poured himself a cup of coffee and sighed. Feeling uncharacteristically pensive, he leaned on the balcony railing. It had been an unusual day. He looked down on the yard, where he could see his students sitting on the grass in a loose circle. All of them expect…

Ash hadn't left for the break?

Abandoning his coffee on the railing, Kukui marched back through the hallway into the class room. And sure enough, there Ash was still sitting, frowning at his book Kukui was certain he wasn't actually reading. Pikachu stood on the desk, and even though Kukui couldn't see its face, he was quite sure the pokemon was trying to get Ash to look at it. Rowlet had rolled off the desk and was snoozing on the floor next to his feet.

"I thought you were the one most in need of a break", Kukui commented in a light tone. He wasn't mad at Ash, but the kid was definitely acting strange. Even if he were exhausted, Ash never missed a chance to go outside, especially during school hours. Kukui leaned on the door frame, a fond smile on his lips, though that didn't last for long.

Kukui wasn't sure what reaction he had been expecting, but it had not been this.

There was no reaction.

Neither the boy nor his pokemon showed any signs they had even heard him.

The strange feeling of uneasiness came back from the morning. Kukui approached his student, repeating his name. He could hear Pikachu's mumbled "pika, pikapi…" and Ash soft whimper. Then, he spoke.

Kukui had heard something about a greninja back home, and now Ash was speaking of it again. The kid sounded so strained that Kukui couldn't help but demand answers.

He regretted it immediately. The Professor had never seen Ash react so badly. He jumped off his chair, backing off like he though Kukui would attack him. His eyes were wide and scared, and he didn't seem to be entirely aware of his surroundings. Startled, Kukui did his best to appear less threatening, while Pikachu screamed and Rowlet, waking up to the noise, flew straight up in the air screeching. It had no idea what was going on. Kukui felt very much the same.

After a few horrible seconds, there was finally recognition in Ash's eyes. He babbled something about being fine, turned for the door… and promptly collapsed on his knees. His arms flew around for a second before constricting tightly against his sides. There was no sound. It looked like he couldn't even draw a breath.

Pikachu reacted first. It had dashed down on the floor and to Ash's side before Kukui even had back the brainpower to do anything but stare in shock. Finally, he forced himself to move. He rushed around the desk to kneel in front of Ash.

His eyes were screwed shut and all the color had washed from his face. "Ash? Ash, can you hear me?" Kukui exclaimed. "What's wrong? Are you hurt? Ash!"

After a long minute, Ash's eyes opened a fraction. For a while, he just stared at Kukui, gasping for breath. Then he swayed, relaxing the tiniest bit. Kukui gently took hold of his shoulders, ready to support him. Ash, finally taking his first deep breath, fell limply in Kukui's arms.


	3. Worry

Kukui was running.

Well, he was panicking. But he was also running, with only one thing in his mind. Get help.

He had stayed with Ash for a while, but when there was no change in his condition, Kukui had left him in a recovery position with Pikachu and Rowlet and ran off to find someone. There usually was a nurse on the school grounds during the days, but he had no idea where she could be. So, he ran to the next person he could think of.

He slammed the Principals door open without knocking. "Samson! I need help!"

"Kukui?" Samson Oak stood up from his chair, a stack of papers slipping from his limp fingers. "What is going on?"

Kukui leaned on the door frame, panting. "It's- it's Ash. He's sick, or… He collapsed!"

"When was this?" Oak questioned, already rounding the table.

"Just now", Kukui said, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. "Do you know were Nurse Jill is?"

Oak nodded. "Probably at the cafeteria. I'll go get her. Go back to Ash."

Kukui agreed, feeling more focused now that he wasn't alone. He started back to the class room. Rounding a corner, he almost crashed into someone. They barely managed to dodge each other and stopped in shock.

It was Kiawe.

"Professor!" he shouted. "I was just looking for you – something's wrong with Ash!"

 _Shit_ , though Kukui _, their break ended._

"I know", he said. "Professor Oak is getting the nurse. Let's go back to the class room."

They hurried back, and found Ash still on the ground, surrounded by all his class mates and their pokemon.

Sophocles and Lillie sat back and looked near to tears, Lana was quiet but determined and Mallow was actually leaning on Ash, checking his vitals. When they spotted Kukui and Kiawe arriving, Lillie shot up.

"He's not waking up!" she wailed. "Professor!"

Rotom Dex appeared from somewhere behind her, screen showing a panicked expression. "Professor Kukui! I only left him for few minutes! I have no data of what happened! I'm sorry!"

Kukui didn't want to worry them any further, so he tried to appear as calm as he could. It was hard, but he managed. "I know, I know, it's okay", he said kindly. "He's going to be fine. The nurse is coming any minute now."

"What's wrong with him?" asked Lana.

"We don't know yet", Kukui said. He shooed Togedemaru and Popplio a bit further away and kneeled on the other side of Ash. He looked at Mallow. "How's he doing?"

Mallow worried her lip for a moment and shrugged. "He doesn't seem to have fever or anything. I don't think he's even unconscious. He moves around a bit and I think he spoke something a minute ago. It's almost like he's sleeping, and just not waking up from it."

"Pikaa", said Pikachu quietly. It was cradling Ash's head, trying to gently wake him up in its own way. Kukui's heart hurt looking at it.

 _It's going to be fine_ , he thought, pushing down his fear, _it has to be_.

 

* * *

 

When Ash opened his eyes, he was not in Alola anymore.

He was in a dimly lit room with grey walls and not much furniture. He tried to move, but soon the last few hours came back to him and he realized he was currently somehow seeing through Greninja's eyes.

Where even was Greninja?

Why was it in a place like this?

A lash of thought from Greninja quieted Ash's wondering. _You need to see this!_ it seemed to say. Ash did his best to calm down and just ease into the flow of their bond.

He heard a door open behind them, and someone walked in. "I apologize deeply for this treatment", an eerily familiar voice said. Greninja turned its head, and Ash felt his heart skip a beat in terror.

Lysandre.

The man was dressed in a black-and-grey pinstripe suit and his red hair was as crazy as ever. But his face was different. There was serious scarring on the right side of his face, all over his cheek up to his mouth. It made his distinct face look crooked and scarier than ever.

"Let me just make this clear. I don't want to hurt you, but I need to know a few things", Lysandre was saying. "The less stubborn you act, the quicker we get this over with."

Ash felt Greninja go tense and its low growl could be heard in the room. Wondering why it didn't attack, Ash soon realized the pokemon was chained to a chair, and felt his own anger flare up.

"I can clearly see you are in your bond-evolved form, so there is no point denying it. Is your trainer here in Kalos?" Lysandre studied Greninja carefully. "I can't imagine he would let you get captured like this and not do anything about it. How far away can you be from each other and still stay connected?"

Ignoring him, Greninja turned its head and stared at the opposite wall. Lysandre walked around it. Ash could tell he was getting frustrated. "You must know where he is", Lysandre demanded. He pulled out a rolled-up paper from a shelf behind him. He carefully straightened it, revealing a map of all the regions.

"Just point here in which region he is."

Greninja stared at the map, carefully moving its eyes over all the regions to not reveal Ash's true location. It shifted to look at Lysandre.

"I promise I'm not planning to hurt him", Lysandre said. "I just need to talk to him. Ask him about a few things. It's not going to be like last time. And I already apologized for that, didn't I?"

Ash could feel Greninja thinking. Planning. But he couldn't quite make out for what.

"You only need to point out his general location, and my team will do the rest", Lysandre urged. "Agreed?"

There was a tense silence, after which, to Ash's horror, Greninja nodded.

Lysandre's grin was terrifying.

"Excellent!" he said. "I will release one of your arms now. Do not even think about doing anything with it expect pointing at this map."

Greninja nodded again.

Sparing one more look at it, Lysandre leaned over and pressed a chip of some sort on one of the cuffs. There was a low buzzing sound, and the cuff popped open.

Greninja moved so fast it was a blur. With all the power it could muster, it slammed the heel of its palm to Lysandre's chest and sent him flying across the room. Ash could feel his own heart beat pick up. _Use Cut!_ he urged and Greninja agreed. It created the knife-like move on its hand and slashed at the chain keeping it in place.

It only took few tries, and they were free. Greninja rushed up and faced Lysandre. The man was just getting up from the floor, visibly shaken.

Also, visibly angry.

"You damn pokemon", he hissed. "How stupid can you be? We will find out where Ash is, with or without your help. It would have just been easier for everyone if you- "

He didn't get to finish, as Greninja threw the shuriken from its back with such precision it slammed Lysandre back against the wall. He slid down on the floor, whimpering.

Greninja turned and walked out of the room.

Unfortunately, it didn't get far until two goons in grey outfits ran around the corner and blocked the way. Seeing the loose prisoner, they called out their pokemon: a houndoom and a drapion.

 

* * *

 

Nurse Jill stood up and just looked down at Ash for a moment.

Everyone was holding their breaths.

"I'm sorry", she began. They could hear the uncertainty in her voice. "I can't tell you what is wrong with him. His heart and lungs sound normal, he doesn't have a fever and doesn't appear to have any visible head trauma. He is not even properly unconscious. From what you told me about his actions just before, Professor Kukui, this could possibly be some type of epileptic seizure. But it's nothing I have ever seen before. For now, we can only make him comfortable and see if anything changes. Also, it would be advisable to find out if he has a history of seizures or other illnesses."

Kukui tugged at his hair. He could already imagine the calls to Ash's mother. "All right, thank you. We should probably move him to the recovery room next to your office."

Nurse Jill nodded. "I'll go ahead and prepare the bed for him."

After she left, Kukui turned to his class. He was met with a crowd of anxious kids and pokemon. "School is over for today", he said. "I know you are all worried and want to help, but Ash doesn't need us all hovering around him."

"But Professor-! "

"We can't just leave him!"

"I want to help!"

"Togedemaru toge!"

Kukui raised his hands and his voice. "I will stay here and see that he is fine. You all need to go home." He turned to Rotom Dex before it could interject. "You too, Rotom Dex."

"What?! But Professor! I can help Nurse Jill with my extensive data!"

"I have experience with first aid", argued Mallow.

Kukui shot them a look that made the whole group quiet down and bow their heads. "I'm not arguing about this."

He crouched next to Pikachu, who was still curled next to his partners head. It stared back, a warning in its eyes. "You can stay, of course", he said, and Pikachu relaxed some. On the floor, Ash was shaking his head slightly, mumbling something Kukui couldn't make out.

With a deep breath, Kukui rolled his shoulders. "Alright, I'm going to pick him up now. Let's get him to bed."

 

* * *

 

With Ash's help, Greninja put up a good fight. But it was hurt an exhausted, and it was two against one. The battle went on for a while, until suddenly the goons stopped and grinned.

Warily, Greninja turned around.

Lysandre was standing behind it, holding something that looked like a remote controller.

He was furious.

"You do remember that little band around your waist, I assume?" he sneered. Greninja glanced down and Ash could see a smooth metal ring going around its body.

"That's right. I tried to be nice. I tried to tell you I didn't want to hurt you. But you must have known I wouldn't just let you leave. And yet you still resisted?"

He pressed on the controller – just for a second, so that Greninja and Ash could feel the painful shock spike through their body. Grimacing, it fell to one knee. _Just obey him,_ Ash pleaded. _Tell him where I am. I don't want him to hurt you._

Greninja very angrily disagreed. Its whole body shaking, it rose back up to both feet.

 _Please, Greninja,_ Ash begged. _Don't!_

Lysandre sighed. "As you wish."

He pushed hard on the controller, and Ash's world faded white.


	4. History

Ash woke up with a start.

He stared up at a wooden ceiling. He had no idea where he was. His body felt like it had been run over by a herd of Tauros. Actually, he knew what that felt like, and this was worse. What had happened…?

Greninja.

Ash gasped and scrambled to sit up on the bed. Suddenly, he felt light headed and there was a gripping tightness in his chest. He tried to push himself completely up but couldn't get his arms working properly.

"Pikapi!"

Through his panic, Ash recognized his best friends voice. He stopped moving, looking down. Pikachu had jumped on his lap and was pawing worriedly at his stomach. "Pika, pikachu!"

Ash opened his arms and hugged it tightly. "Pikachu! Oh man…"

From the corner of his eye, he could see the door of the room open and someone rushing in. Ash raised his head and was met with the wide eyes of Professor Kukui.

"Ash! You have woken up!" he exclaimed, dropping down beside the bed. "How are you feeling? Please, lie back down!"

Ash stared at him, confused. Carefully, he scooted back and leaned against the back wall, lowering Pikachu back on his lap. He was still feeling extremely anxious about Greninja and Lysandre, but the present situation forced him to push it back.

"I'm fine", he slowly said. "What even happened?"

Kukui frowned. "That's what we are trying to figure out. Do you have any chronic illnesses? Have you ever experienced seizures before?"

"Seizures?" Ash swallowed. He could still feel the phantom pain from Lysandre's device, but that had been done to Greninja, right? "I don't think so."

"Pikaa…"

"Was I unconscious?" Ash asked. His chest still felt tight and he took a deep breath. "What did I do?"

Kukui looked even more worried. "What is the last thing you remember?"

 _Greninja getting hurt_ , Ash thought, and the world faded. He tried to focus on Kukui, on Kukuis voice, but his vision swam and there was something pressing on his chest. He stared past Pikachu, at his shaking hands.

Greninja…

"Ash?" Kukui's voice was far away, muffled. "Hey, just hang in there, the doctor is almost here."

"Pikapi!"

Ears buzzing and heart racing, Ash showed Pikachu and his blanket aside and pushed himself out of the bed. "I have to go", he said.

"What? Ash, hold on!"

He set his bare feet on the carpet and stood up. The room was just a blur of colors and he stumbled on thin air, falling on all fours.

He started crawling towards the door. "I'm sorry, I gotta help Greninja."

Someone was grabbing him around the waist and hefting him up. He lashed out, but there was no strength in it.

"Nurse Jill!" Kukui's voice shouted.

Somehow, Ash was back on the bed. Kukui was leaning over him, holding his shoulders firmly. He was talking. "Hey, just take a deep breath. Ash. You are okay. Just breathe with me."

Eventually, Ash started to understand the words, taking deep breaths with Kukui. He stared up at the Professor, feeling his body slowly relaxing and his pulse going down.

"Kukui?" asked a female voice. "How is Ash?"

"He… I think he's fine now. Have you got the thermometer? He feels a bit hot."

"Yeah, just here."

"Thank you."

Ash felt Pikachu on his side, leaning on his rib cage. His eyes drooped, and the conversation faded to the background.

An insistent thought came to him. He cracked his eyes back open and looked at Kukui's vague direction. "Call Professor Sycamore", he mumbled. "Tell him… Lysandre is back."

If Kukui answered, he didn't hear it.

 

* * *

 

Kukui nervously rapped his fingers on the desk while he waited for the call to connect. Professor Sycamore… The brilliant pokemon Professor in Kalos. They had met once in a conference, but that had been years ago.

And now he was calling him.

The screen beeped, and an unfamiliar face appeared on the monitor. It was a young man with dark hair and tired, serious blue eyes.

"Hi, my name is Professor Kukui", Kukui greeted. "I was calling for Professor Sycamore?"

Something dark flashed in the man's eyes. "Sorry, he is not here."

"Oh? When is he back? I can call later-"

"Don't bother, he won't be back in a while." The man looked to the side, clearly distressed. "I need to go."

Taken aback, Kukui sat up straighter. "Hold on! This cannot wait. Are you his assistant? Do you know someone called Lysandre?"

The young man paused and turned to look at him in clear shock. "What do you mean?"

It wasn't an answer, but Kukui could tell he knew. He decided to press on. "Do you know Ash? Ash Ketchum?"

Something changed in the man's appearance. He leaned in, eyes going wide. "Ash? Is he okay? Wait, who did you say you were, again?"

Well, _that_ was an interesting reaction. Kukui smiled thinly. "Professor Kukui, from the Alola region. And you are...?"

The man still looked wary, but less so about Kukui himself. "I'm Alain. I'm taking care of Professor Sycamores lab for now."

"Where is he, then?" Kukui asked.

"What about Ash?" Alain countered. "Is he there? With you?"

Kukui frowned. "I really need to talk to the Professor."

There was frustration in Alain's eyes, in the tilt of his mouth. "I already told you, he is not available. His lab got broken in and he was attacked. Badly. Professor Sycamore is in the hospital."

Now it was Kukui's turn to stare at the other in shock. "What? When did this happen?"

Alain lowered his eyes. "Few weeks ago." He looked back up, anxious. "Is this about Ash? Please tell me he is okay. Why did you ask about Lysandre?"

"Yes, Ash is here in Alola. He is okay now, but… I'm not completely sure what happened. I think he had a- a dream or something similar. He fell unconscious for a while and woke up distressed. He mentioned someone called Lysandre. And a pokemon called greninja. Do you know something about this?"

Alain seemed visibly relieved after hearing this. "Yes, Greninja was – is – Ash's pokemon he had here in Kalos. And Lysandre was… You must have heard of the Kalos Crisis? Lysandre was the head of that operation. He wanted to destroy the world as it is now."

Kukui nodded thoughtfully. He had heard of the Crisis, but as it had happened so far away, he hadn't really paid attention to the details. "All right", he said. "To give you some context, Ash is my student here on Melemele Island. He is staying with me. He was acting strangely this morning and mentioned Greninja multiple times. Then, during class, he got worse and had some sort of… a fit. He was unresponsive for so long we had to call for a doctor."

Alain gazed at him silently. "And when he woke up?"

"When he woke up, he started panicking. He tried to leave and said he had to help Greninja. Then, he said that Lysandre is back."

Kukui had never seen anyone look as terrified as Alain looked at that moment.

 

* * *

 

"How did it go?"

Exhausted beyond his limit, Kukui lowered himself on Professor Oak's sofa and leaned back with a deep sigh.

"It's worse than I could have imagined", he said. "Few weeks ago, Professor Sycamore's lab was broken into and he got attacked. He is in the hospital. I talked to his friend, Alain. Apparently, Ash has quite the history in Kalos. Especially with what happened during the Crisis."

Oak raised his eyebrows. "The Crisis? From last year?"

"Yes. He and his pokemon, Greninja, they can do this strange variation of the mega evolution – Professor Sycamore named it 'bond phenomenon'." Oak gave him a look. Kukui shook his head. "I know, I hadn't heard of that either. Apparently almost no one has. Ash came up with it by himself and basically only Alain, Sycamore and few of his travelling companions know about it. Anyway, he used the bond evolution in the Kalos league and attracted the attention of Lysandre, who was the head of this group called Team Flare."

Oak got a look of understanding in his eyes. "Team Flare was behind the Crisis."

Kukui nodded. "As far as Alain knows, Lysandre died in the final battle and most of his team were arrested. But now it seems like he might actually be alive and planning something new."

"But how would Ash suddenly know about that?" the Principal asked.

"And that is the question", Kukui said. "Alain only knows the basics of what Ash can do with Greninja. But he didn't completely dismiss the idea that maybe… maybe somehow, through their bond, Greninja told this to Ash."

Oak looked as skeptical as Kukui felt, but he didn't argue. "I guess we will have to ask him ourselves when he wakes up again."

"I guess", agreed Kukui wearily. "Oh, also – you should know what the burglars stole from Professor Sycamore."

Professor Oak's eyes got dark. "Let me guess. His research about the bond phenomenon."

Kukui's look of barely contained dread was an answer enough.

 

* * *

When Ash woke up the next time, he felt slightly less like he was going to burst from anxiety.

Slowly, he opened his eyes and looked around. He still didn't recognize the room, but from what he could see through the window, he assumed he might still be somewhere in the pokemon school. It had gotten dark outside, and he idly wondered how long he had slept.

There was a warm weight on his chest and he raised his hand, petting Pikachu's fur gently. It didn't wake up and Ash wasn't about to disturb it, so he let his head fall back on the pillow and just relaxed. He was trying his best not to think about Greninja and Lysandre.

It was hard, though. The bond had broken between him and Greninja, so he no longer had any awareness what was going on with it and whether it was okay. He was just so worried – so terrified – that something irreversible had happened to Greninja and that was why they were no longer connected. Realistically, he tried to convince himself, Greninja was way too valuable for Lysandre to harm it permanently. The break had probably happened because the bond had been stretched to its limit by Lysandre, and Ash had fallen unconscious. That was how it had happened back before they had perfected to bond, after all. But it didn't help the slightest with the gnawing, consuming fear.

Ash cursed himself for being so weak.

When Greninja had needed him the most, he had let it down.

He must have moved or let out a sound, since Pikachu's ears twitched, and it raised its head, looking at Ash with bleary eyes. "Pikapi!" it said happily and crawled closer to his face, nuzzling his chin.

Ash smiled and wrapped his hands around it. "Pikachu!" he whispered. "I'm sorry I made you worry. I'm fine now. But I-"

He had to stop, feeling his breath catch in his throat. His eyes burned.

"I'm scared, Pikachu," he admitted quietly. For a moment, he just looked to the side, blinking. "Greninja is in big trouble. Lysandre is planning something, and he needs me for it. He's gonna come for me, Pikachu."

"Pi pika, pikachu", exclaimed Pikachu. It looked concerned, but also… angry. Determined. It wasn't going to let Lysandre win that easily. Knowing it was on his side, all the way to the end, made Ash feel slightly better.

There was not much else, Ash thought, that mattered at this moment.

 

* * *

 

In a quiet tone, laying on the warm bed, Pikachu in his arms, he told it everything he had seen through Greninja's eyes. Pikachu said very little throughout, but Ash could tell it was hanging on to his every word, concerned and disturbed.

When he was done, he sat up on the bed and rubbed his eyes. He was starting to feel quite hungry and very thirsty. His head was pounding, and his muscles felt sore. There was a glass of water on the bedside table next to few bottles of some meds he didn't recognize, and he reached for it. He tried to grip on the glass, but when he lifted it, his fingers were weak and it slipped through, crashing on the floorboards.

"Pika!"

"Oh man", groaned Ash. There was water everywhere; soaking the edge of the carpet and pooling under the table. Wearily, Ash climbed up from the bed and went around the room, looking for any tissues or a towel.

He was rummaging through a drawer, when the door opened and a nurse in pastel blue clothes peeked in.

"Ash?" she asked. When she spotted him, she smiled brightly. "You are awake! How are you feeling?"

"Much better, thanks!" Ash said. "What time is it?"

The nurse shrugged. "Just past two AM. Hey, let me go get Professor Kukui. He's been waiting for you to wake up!"

She disappeared from the doorway and Ash looked at Pikachu, horrified.

"Two AM? He's been staying up for me all night?"

"Pika pika chu."

"He could have gone home! I'm fine."

Pikachu gave him a look and didn't answer. It hopped back on the bed, yawning and stretching widely. Sighing, Ash sat next to it, tapping his foot nervously.

Few minutes later, slightly rumpled and weary Professor Kukui came through the door.

"I heard you have been up and about!" he smiled. "How're you doing?"

"Just fine!" answered Ash. "I feel much better. You shouldn't have waited up for me."

Kukui gave him a weird look Ash didn't quite understand. "Of course, I waited", he said. "You gave me quite the scare earlier. But I'm glad you're better now."

He pulled a chair near the bed and looked at Ash for a minute. "The doctor gave you a cursory check while you were sleeping. He didn't find anything unusual, but he wants to do more tests in the morning. You did have a slight fever, so we could maybe measure it again now."

Ash frowned and stared at the floor. "That's not necessary, Professor. It wasn't me who was hurt. It was Greninja."

"I don't agree, but let's talk about that later. Speaking of which, I called Professor Sycamore's lab."

Ash raised his head in surprise. He had forgotten he had told him to do that.

"What did he say? Had he heard anything about Lysandre?"

Kukui looked at him with serious eyes. "There is something you need to know." Briefly, he summarized what had happened to Sycamore and what Alain had told him about Ash.

Ash felt sick to his stomach. He stared at his balled-up hands. "You gotta be wondering about Greninja and me", he said quietly. He could feel Kukui's eyes on him but couldn't make himself to look back. "I don't really tell about it to people, not after Lysandre. The thing is… I don't really understand it myself.

"Sometimes, when we fight together or when we really want to, I can see what Greninja is seeing and we can share the most important thing that's on our mind. Like when I came to Alola, I was just so happy, and I really wanted to tell Greninja about it, so I did."

Ash braved a look at the Professor. He didn't say anything, just gave an encouraging nod for him to continue.

"I think it was almost half a year ago, when I was just about to leave Kalos. There was still something going on after the Crisis and all, so Greninja needed to stay and protect the region. Greninja decided to stay in its evolved form because it's stronger that way. And that way we would always be connected."

Ash paused and rubbed his eyes. It had always been so difficult to explain these things. "So, it's been that long, and usually I don't even remember that we have this bond. Sometimes I would get these flashes, when it was fighting, but even that hasn't happened in many months. Until now. Last night, it tried to share something with me, but I was sleeping and it didn't work. That's why I was so tired. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

Ash looked up at Kukui. "It's okay, Ash", was all the Professor said. He had this strange, sad look in his eyes.

Ash leaned on his hands and stared up at the ceiling. "Greninja had been watching this place in Kalos. It probably knew something weird was going on in there. But it got in a fight and got caught. Lysandre caught it." Ash felt the familiar anxiety pressing on his chest and screwed his eyes shut for a moment. "Lysandre hurt it with this device. It was like Pikachu's thunderbolt, but much worse. Then Greninja somehow… pulled me in, and it was like I was out of my own body. It has never been like that before. But I think Greninja just really needed to show me what was happening to it."

There was dawning realization in Kukui's eyes. "That was when you fell unconscious during class."

"I guess."

"So, later, when you were having convulsions… Lysandre was hurting Greninja again?"

Ash looked at him in confusion. "When I was having…?"

Kukui nodded. "I had just gotten you into this room and went to get a glass of water. When I came back, you were… shaking. Like you were constricting every muscle in your body and struggling. I ran next to you, but that's when you went completely limp. Five minutes later, as I was talking to Nurse Jill, you woke up."

Ash hummed thoughtfully. "Oh, I didn't know my body reacted to it like that. But yeah, Greninja tried to escape and Lysandre got mad, so he used the device a lot. I couldn't… It was too much for us, so the bond got broken and I fell unconscious." He ground his teeth together, brow set. "And now I don't have any way to know if Greninja is okay."

Pikachu hopped on his lap, murmuring softly. Ash shared a look with it, and then met Kukui's gaze. "Professor Kukui, I gotta help Greninja. I'm going to Kalos. You have to let me go."

Kukui's eyes widened. "What? Wait a minute, Ash! Lysandre is dangerous. We don't even know what he is planning for this time!"

Ash kind of knew, but he felt like it would be best not to tell the Professor about Lysandre's interest in him. Anyway, everyone would be safer if Ash went to Kalos by himself and didn't lead Lysandre and his goons to peaceful Alola.

"It's gonna be okay, Professor", Ash said, and Kukui looked at him like he was going mad.

Ash cleared his parched throat. "Hey, could I have some water? I dropped the glass you left me, sorry!"

It took few seconds for Kukui to shake himself out of his shock. He looked at the wet floor for another second and then jumped up. "Of course! By the Gods, you must be hungry as well! I had some soup prepared, it's just in the fridge next door. I'll go get it. Don't go anywhere."

He rushed out of the room, and Ash turned to Pikachu.

"In the morning, right buddy? Let's leave at dawn."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can I just say... poor Kukui.


	5. Help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody! I just want to remind you all how grateful I am for your support!
> 
> Parts of this chapter might seem a bit confusing, so let me introduce you to TIME ZONES! For the purposes of this story, I have decided that Kalos time is about 4 hours behind and Kanto time about 8 hours ahead of Alola's. So if it's midday in Kalos, it's 4 PM in Alola and 12 PM in Kanto.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Kiawe couldn't imagine who would call him at this hour.

He slumped in front of his beeping computer and squinted at the screen. It was four AM, so he strongly considered not answering. But then he looked closer at the caller. The call was coming from the pokemon school.

Suddenly very awake, he accepted the call. Ash and Pikachu's faces popped up on the monitor. He blinked. "Ash? Hey, what's up?"

"Alola, Kiawe!" Ash grinned like nothing was out of the ordinary. "Sorry for calling this late. I need a favor."

Kiawe stared at the boy. "What? Hold on, what is going on? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Listen, I gotta travel to Kalos as soon as possible. I wondered if you could give me a lift to the airport with Charizard?"

For a moment, Kiawe thought for sure he was still sleeping. Ash was making no sense. He brushed a hand through his hair. "What do you mean, you have to travel to Kalos? What is going on?"

"I can't ask Professor Kukui, he wouldn't let me leave", continued Ash, like Kiawe hadn't spoken. He suddenly looked very serious, almost desperate. "Please Kiawe, it would be a big help. There is something a really need do. My friend is in big trouble. I gotta help it."

Kiawe swallowed. Ash was going behind Kukui's back? Travelling to Kalos of all places? And so soon after he had gotten sick? Kiawe was ready to say no. But he also understood the burning need to help. And if it truly was something Ash needed to do… "I will help you", he decided. "Of course I will, Ash. When do you need to leave?"

Ash smiled widely. "Thanks so much! I really owe you a big one. I already booked the flight. It leaves at eight."

"At eight?!" Kiawe shouted. "Eight in the morning? What, have you packed already?"

Ash looked around with wide eyes. "Sorry, can you be a bit quieter? I had to sneak into the computer lab. Professor Kukui is sleeping just next door."

Kiawe shut his mouth but couldn't help his shocked expression. Ash raised his small backpack, so it showed on the screen. "I already got everything I need. I just needed a way to get to the airport fast and quietly. So, will you help me?"

Sometimes, Kiawe really couldn't understand what was going through Ash's head. Still, he nodded. "Yes, I will help you. Let me just grab a few things and I will be there in an hour, right?"

Ash beamed. "Sure! Thank you so much!"

They ended the call. Kiawe rubbed his temples. There was still a small rational part in his brain that tried to tell him this was a colossally bad idea, but his fighter's brain was quickly taking over. Before he knew it, he had made his decision.

Yeah, he had promised to take Ash to the airport. But he hadn't promised he would let Ash board the plane alone.

He just needed to make a call.

 

* * *

 

"Pallet House, how can I help you?"

Kukui swallowed. Delia sounded really busy, her restaurant clearly in the middle of lunch hour.

He cleared his throat. "Hi Delia, it's Professor Kukui."

He could hear the smile in her voice. "Oh, alola, Professor!"

"I'm sorry to call you at work, but I couldn't reach you earlier and it's quite important. Do you have a moment now?"

"Um, yes of course, just a second…." He could hear Delia speaking to someone, probably putting them in charge temporarily. Then she was walking, and soon the background noise subsided, and he could hear a door closing. "All right, what is it?"

Now that he actually had to talk about it, Kukui felt quite nervous. He very much did want to believe Ash's explanation about him and Greninja, but he just had to make sure. And either way, he did have the responsibility to tell Delia about his son's wellbeing. "Um, it's about Ash."

Delia sighed. "Of course. What did he do this time?"

Kukui was taken aback. Her first instinct wasn't to worry about her son, but to scold him. "Hold on, he did nothing wrong!" Kukui quickly said. "He had a… health issue." Instantly, Kukui wanted to slap himself. That had been a terrible way to start.

"A health issue? Ash?" Delia was saying.

"Does he have any history of epilepsy or a similar condition?" Kukui barreled on.

Delia fell quiet for a moment. "Epilepsy?" Now he could hear the concern at the edges of her voice. "What happened to him?"

Kukui quickly explained the main points of the previous day's incident. The absence, the loss of breath, the sudden spells of convulsing. He left out the part where Ash had attempted to crawl to Kalos on all fours, even though in Kukui's memory it had been one of the most upsetting things to witness.

"He woke up properly about an hour ago and seemed quite fine already. He ate a whole bowl of soup and went back to sleep. I still want to take him to the clinic for a proper checkup after he wakes up. Especially if this is something that has never happened before?"

Delia was silent throughout the explanation, and long after. Finally, she spoke. "Ash has always been healthy, Professor."

There was a pause, while Kukui waited for Delia to continue. But it didn't happen.

"Delia?" he questioned kindly. "Are you alright?"

"Ash is a unique boy", she said finally, in an odd voice. "Sometimes things happen to him that no one else understands. Are you sure this had nothing to do with a pokemon?"

Kukui was glad he was not having a face call with her. His expression would have been a sight to see. "What do you mean?" he choked out.

"I'm sure he's fine", Delia said. "Just let me know if it happens again. Or if something else happens to him. I really need to get back to my restaurant now. Thank you for calling."

"Wait, Delia!" Kukui yelped, but she had already closed the call. Kukui stared at the silent phone. This had not gone how he had expected _at all_.

Deep in thought, Kukui walked back through the silent hallways. He waived a hand at Nurse Jill who was nearly asleep on her chair and peeked into Ash's room. The kid was sprawled on the bed, sleeping peacefully, Pikachu on his stomach.

 _Sometimes things happen to him that no one else understands._ Kukui sighed. Maybe he was fine. Maybe Ash had an invisible connection to a pokemon thousands of miles away on a different region and his body had just reacted to what happened to it. Maybe Ash just was _unique_.

He shuffled into the teachers' break room, cleared a couch from extra pillows and fell limply on it.

 _Whatever it was_ , thought Kukui and yawned widely, _it could wait until the morning._

 

Two hours later, when he woke up and went to check on Ash, the boy was gone.

 

* * *

 

Kiawe had just landed on the school yard when he spotted Ash and Pikachu slipping through the side door. He waved and urged Charizard to walk towards them. Ash, noticing them approach, waved back and jogged the rest of the distance.

"Alola!" he greeted with a grin. There was determined sort of energy in him, his eyes sharp and jaw set.

"Alola, Ash", Kiawe said. "Hop on!"

Ash did, and they soared up into the hazy early morning sky.

They were quiet at first, deep in though and exhausted by the early hour. Then, Kiawe saw Pikachu jump over his shoulder and walk up to Charizard's neck. It faced the horizon, ears down and legs bowed, like it was about to jump.

"Pika, pikachu pika!" it said. Charizard turned briefly to look at it.

"Zard, charizard", it answered.

"I wonder what they are talking about", said Kiawe.

He could hear Ash's soft laugh behind him. "Pikachu's just getting hyped up! I mean, I woulda liked it if we didn't have to go back to Kalos anytime soon, but now that it's happening, I guess it's pretty exiting too. We had a great time in Kalos, even though the Crisis kinda messed everything up."

"The Crisis?" Kiawe couldn't help but ask. "You were there?"

"Yeah", Ash said in serious tone. "Anyway, it's a long story. The thing is, there is still a lot of bad stuff going on in Kalos. My friend got in trouble while it was trying to help clear it all up, so now I gotta help it. You get why I couldn't tell Professor Kukui about leaving this soon, right?"

"He would have probably locked you in the house and never let you out", said Kiawe with a chuckle. The adrenaline from their secret trip was making him all giddy. He couldn't help the excited flame that surged through his chest when they started to descend towards the airport.

When they had landed in front of the departure halls, Ash hopped off Charizard and looked up to Kiawe. "Thanks again, really. You know, you shouldn't tell Professor Kukui that you helped me. Just say you knew nothing about this."

Kiawe jumped off too, and Ash took a step back in surprise. "Actually, I don't have to tell him anything", Kiawe said, and Ash stared at him. "Because I'm coming with you!"

"What?" shouted Ash. "No, you're not, no way!"

"C'mon, you really think we would let you go all alone?" came a third voice, and Ash twirled around, heart in his throat. Behind him stood Lana, with a full backpack at her feet and sleepy Popplio in her arms.

"Lana?" he yelped. "What are you doing here?"

Lana smiled playfully. "Coming with you to Kalos. Kiawe called me and told me you were about to do something really stupid. I figured since dad's back for now, I don't have any responsibilities at home, so I might as well join you."

"We already bought the tickets, so, you know, there's not really much you can do to stop us", said Kiawe. He reached up and collected his bag he had stored behind Charizard saddle. Thanking it, he returned Charizard into its ball.

Ash was whipping his head between them, bewildered. "Guys…" His voice was full of emotion. He turned to Pikachu, who was sitting on his shoulder. "What do you think, buddy? Let's go save Greninja with Kiawe and Lana, huh?"

"Pika pikachu!"

Ash and Pikachu turned back to their friends with identical grins on their faces. Ash pumped his fist. "All right, let's do this then! Thank you so much, guys!"

"No problem", said Kiawe solemnly.

"Yeah, no problem at all", agreed Lana. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Ash smiled widely at her but soon got a bit more serious. "You don't really know what you're getting into. It's gonna be pretty dangerous."

Lana picked up her bag and hefted it on her shoulder. "Yeah, you can tell us more about it when we are in the air. We should get going."

"She's right, let's not miss our plane", said Kiawe, grinning at Ash over his shoulder.

Ash stared after them for a moment. Then, he shrugged, and ran to catch up with his friends.

 

* * *

 

"Have you been here all night?"

Kukui startled so badly he accidentally kicked the table in front of him. Cursing, he sat up. He realized then that he had been dozing off on his chair in the computer lab, his body just so overwhelmed with stress that, at some point, it had shut down.

Kukui rubbed at his eyes until he saw spots and turned towards the voice. He found Principal Oak standing there in the doorway, staring him down. Morning light was already filtering through the hallway windows behind him.

"Huh?" he mumbled intelligently. "Oh, Samson… Um, yeah."

Samson stepped closer. "What are you doing? Have you slept at all?"

Kukui moved on to massage his temples. "Yeah. Yeah, I slept for two hours and that was enough. You know, for me to lose Ash."

"Lose Ash?" Oak parroted. "Lose him where?"

Kukui snorted. "If I knew where he was, I wouldn't have lost him, now would I?"

Samson stared at him.

Kukui bowed his head. "I'm sorry. I'm in a terrible mood." He took a deep breath and tried to center himself. He felt strange, his head stuffy and body stiff and sore. "It was about three AM, Ash was finally sleeping peacefully – well, that's what I thought – so I went to call his mother and after that, I went to have a nap. But when I woke up, he was gone. So, I have now spent about…" He checked the time. It was half past seven. "Two and a half hours just running around here, and calling everyone, from my students homes, to Ash mother – again! – to Rotom Dex at home, to the pokemon center… Nothing. He is just gone."

Samson set a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Hey, slow down. You are making no sense. Kukui, did anyone have any idea where he might be?"

Defeated, Kukui shook his head. "I pretty much just woke them up and made everyone upset. All his mother said is that this happens sometimes. What does that even mean? Her son just goes missing sometimes?"

He sighed and leaned his head on his hands. "This is the longest day of my life. I'm just so exhausted. And I fear Ash has gone and done something very reckless."

And that was when Mallow, sweaty and out of breath like she had been running for her dear life, leaned through the doorway.

"Professors!" she panted. "Um, I just got a text from Lana. She's at the airport with Kiawe and Ash. The plane leaves in fifteen minutes. They are on their way to Kalos!"

 

* * *

 

Lysandre was fuming.

The kid's greninja had fallen into some sort of meditative state and was no longer responding to threats nor pain. It had de-evolved back into its normal state after Lysandre had begun with the shock collar. He did have to admit – though only quietly and to himself alone – that he had probably gone a bit overboard with it. But he had just been so _angry_.

But whatever the reason had been, it was now just a normal greninja and unresponsive of a one. It had given away nothing, so Lysandre was still in square one with locating Ash Ketchum. The thing from his wildest dreams had walked straight into his lap but had given him nothing but a pounding headache.

Still, the fact that it had de-evolved meant that Ash must now be aware that something had happened to it, right? Wasn't one of the things about the bond phenomenon that the trainer feels the same pain their pokemon does? If that was true, then Ash must have been alerted to the trouble. But did it happen if they were in different regions, possibly hundreds or thousands of miles away from each other?

Lysandre had read through Professor Sycamore's notes at least half a dozen times by now. They weren't that extensive, and mostly focused on Ash and his greninja while in combat. And even then, most of it was clear bullshit. Maximum trust? Pokemon and trainer's hearts being one? Right.

There were the other notes too. The notes of Alva, the previous mega evolution councillor of the Azoth Kingdom. His years of hard work and study had produced the mega wave jewel, which he had used to force mega evolution on his pokemon. About half a year ago he had been arrested when his mission to gain control of the Azoth Kingdom had failed, but luckily Lysandre's henchmen had found his research before the police had. The jewel was now destroyed, but there was one thing Alva's research notes had made Lysandre sure of.

If mega evolution could be forced, so could bond evolution.

And Lysandre was going to find out just how it was done.


	6. Encounters

Lana woke up as the plane had finally begun its descent.

She rubbed at her eyes and looked around. Next to her, Ash was still deep asleep with Pikachu curled up tightly on his lap. Next to him, on the aisle seat, Kiawe was studying the map of Kalos.

"Hey", she said in a low voice. Kiawe raised his head and smiled slightly at her. "You ready for this?"

"I think so", answered Kiawe. He frowned. "Though what Ash told us about Lysandre and Team Flare… That sounded way more intense than what I saw on the foreign news."

Lana agreed, though she was pretty sure Ash had told them barely anything. At some points, it had been clear he was skipping over some major events. Either way, she knew she was in for something big and probably very dangerous. But she refused to regret her decision to help her friend.

"I just cannot wait to see Ash-Greninja", she said, excitement bubbling inside. "That sounded so cool!"

"I know, right", agreed Kiawe. "I will never understand how Ash could leave a pokemon like that behind."

Pikachu's ears twitched, and it raised its head. It looked up at Lana and smiled.

"Hey, Pikachu", she said. "We are almost there."

"Pika!" it chirped. Then, it crawled up Ash's arm, all the way up onto his head. Ash's whole upper body bent down by its weight, until his head touched the seat in front of him.

That was when he woke up. "Huh?" he croaked sleepily and sat up. He ran a hand through his hair and hit Pikachu, who yelped and hopped back on his shoulder. "We there yet?"

Kiawe watched the two with fond amusement. "Yeah, almost", he said.

Popplio jumped up on Lana's lap and leaned in to watch through the window. "Popplio!" it said with excitement. They had descended under the thick clouds and could finally see Kalos stretching under them. Lana peeked through the window as well, and saw what could only be Lumiose City, the biggest city in the Kalos region. After Alola and their sweet and quiet Melemele Island, it seemed huge and imposing in front of her.

 

* * *

 

"You sure about this?" she asked when they all stood in front of a phone booth in the airport lobby. "You know what you're gonna say?"

Ash nodded. "Let's just do this."

It took only two seconds for Professor Kukui to answer. "Hello?"

"Alola, Professor, guys", they all greeted, as they saw the whole rest of the class crowding behind Kukui.

There was a moment of chaos when everyone was talking at the same time, until Kukui raised his hands and silenced the others.

He looked exhausted, but he smiled nonetheless when he saw they were all doing well. "Thank you for calling. Ash, when you come back, you are grounded for a month."

"Ash! How could you leave me behind?" wailed Rotom Dex from the back of the crowd.

Ash had the decency to look embarrassed. "I'm sorry for sneaking off, Professor, Rotom. But I really gotta do this."

"I know", Kukui sighed. "And you are free to travel as you please, you are a registered trainer. Doesn't change the fact you almost gave me a heart attack when you suddenly disappeared. Also, are you sure you're completely okay now?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Kukui looked at Kiawe and Lana. "To you two I can only say I'm really worried, and I wish you wouldn't have left. Rest of it you are going to have to hear from your parents."

Lana and Kiawe shared a look. "Yup, we know", Lana said. "We already called them from the plane."

"They were… loud phone calls, but we did eventually get them to understand why we are doing this", added Kiawe. "And I'm not backing down. Even if it might be dangerous, I just know couldn't let Ash do it all alone."

"That's what I thought, too", Lana said.

Ash turned to look at them with a wide smile. "Thanks, guys!"

"I would have loved to come, but I just have too many responsibilities at the restaurant", Mallow piped up from behind Kukui.

"My mom and dad would never have let me leave", sighed Sophocles.

"I would have been no help in a situation like that", mumbled Lillie, wringing her hands. "I would have just been on the way."

"That's not true, Lillie!" exclaimed Ash.

Kiawe smiled at their friends. "We understand why you all couldn't come. You don't need to worry. We will be okay."

"Oh, to help with that, I made some calls myself. Got you some extra help", said Professor Kukui. "They should be there at the airport by now. Probably waiting just outside the front doors."

Ash leaned in, eyes wide. "What? Who's there?"

Kukui smiled. "I think you will have to find that out yourselves. But before you go…"

One by one, he gave all three a very serious, long look. "Please, stay safe. Call me every day, if you can. I want to know everything that happens. If anything goes wrong, and you need help, just tell me and I will be on my way as soon as I can." He paused and made sure they all understood. Then, he looked at Ash. "And Ash, call you mother."

Ash groaned but agreed to do that. They all solemnly promised to stay safe. After they had shared their see-you-soons with the rest of the class as well, they ended the call.

It was an odd feeling. They were in Kalos, and they were going to face down a notorious criminal and save a friend. It was like something from a movie, thought Lana. But it was real. Thinking about it, the reality of it, she could feel the anxiety bubbling in her chest.

"Let's go then, right guys?" cheered Ash, and pointed towards the front doorway of the airport hall. He seemed excited above all, no traces of nervousness to be seen. Pikachu jumped from his shoulder, hopping ahead full of bouncing energy.

"Yeah, all right", agreed Kiawe, slightly less sure. "Let's go."

"Come on, Popplio", said Lana to the pokemon at her feet, and together, they left the safety of the airport, stepping into the chilly and cloudy Kalos morning.

 

They could instantly hear someone shouting.

"Hey, Ash! Over here!"

They turned around and Lana saw three people running towards them.

The two girls reached them first.

"Ash!" they squealed and rushed to hug him. Ash seemed confused at first but hugged them back. When they broke apart, he was smiling from ear to ear.

"Serena, Bonnie! Hey guys!"

The older boy finally reached them and put a hand on Ash's shoulder. "It's so nice to see you again!"

"You too, Clemont", Ash grinned. "Wait, did Professor Kukui call you?"

"He called Alain, who contacted us", explained the older girl, who Lana assumed was Serena. "He probably wanted Alain to contact the local Officer Jenny too, but Alain thought it would just be easier - and faster! - if we tried first by ourselves without getting the authorities involved."

"Yeah, and call them on the scene later, when Greninja's safely out", said Clemont.

"That's good", Ash said. "Oh man, I'm so happy to see you! How are you guys?"

Lana exchanged a look with Kiawe. They were standing back, watching the meetup of old friends. It was clear these four had a history, and even with what little Ash had told them about his journey to the Kalos Conference and the Crisis after, Lana could tell they had seen each other through some tough times.

Still, she couldn't help but wonder about the little girl that was coming with them. She couldn't be old enough to even have her own pokemon, could she?

Like reading her thoughts, the girl, Bonnie, had walked around the other three and up to Lana and Kiawe. "Hey", she said. "You must be Ash's friends from the pokemon school, right? From Alola?"

"Oh yeah", Kiawe said with a little wave. "My name is Kiawe, and this is Lana."

"Nice to meet you!" smiled Bonnie. From her bag at her hip, a tiny head popped up. "Denene!"

Bonnie giggled. "Dedenne also says hi!"

"Pop, popplio!"

"Wow, what pokemon is that?" exclaimed Bonnie, and crouched down to stare at Popplio. Dedenne jumped out of her bag and ran up to play with Popplio.

"Is Dedenne yours?" asked Lana. "Are you ten already?"

"No, she's eight", said Clemont, who had appeared beside them. "Dedenne is technically mine, even though I let Bonnie take care of it."

"I'm almost nine", grumbled Bonnie.

"Yeah, Clemont is Bonnie's brother!" Ash said. Then he rubbed his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry, I forgot to introduce you all. Serena, Bonnie, Clemont, meet Lana and Kiawe. They are my friends from Melemele Island!"

They all greeted each other. Ash continued: "Clemont is the Lumiose City gym leader and an inventor. Serena is a pokemon performer and a great cook! And Bonnie is gonna be an amazing trainer when she's old enough – she already trained Zygarde!"

Serena blushed, and Bonnie grinned widely. "Squishy is not here right now, though. It had to go somewhere important."

"Zygarde?" said Kiawe slowly. "I know it appeared during the Crisis… it's yours?"

"It's my friend", said Bonnie nodding. "It hangs out with me sometimes when things are good."

Kiawe rubbed at his ear like he thought he had heard wrong. "It… Wait, _Zygarde_ hangs out with you?"

"Well, just one of the cores", said Clemont, like that would make it any less impressive. "Anyway, shouldn't we get going? Do you know which way we are heading, Ash?"

Everyone turned to look at Ash. He stared back at them blankly. "No", he said then. "I mean, I just know Greninja is somewhere here in Kalos!"

"What", spoke Lana, as everyone else was speechless. "Kalos is huge! How do you expect us to find it?"

Ash didn't look too worried. He started jogging down the street but turned around to look at them. "I thought we would just walk around a bit. I'm sure we will eventually find it!"

Lana and Kiawe stared after him. Serena sighed, and Bonnie leaned down to pick Dedenne back up into her bag.

"Just go with it", Clemont said to them in low voice. "Ash has this way of finding trouble. I'm sure before we know it, we've- "

"Hey, I know those guys!" they heard Ash shout. Somehow, he and Pikachu had already gotten quite far away. Before they had any time to react, the two had sprinted across the road and were quickly disappearing into the crowd.

"There he goes", stated Bonnie.

"Ash, wait!" yelped Serena, and dashed after him.

"Oh no", said Lana, and then the rest of them were running too.

 

* * *

 

Those had been the grunts with a drapion and a houndoom. Ash was sure of it.

They had the same grey outfits than what he had seen Greninja's capturers dressed in. They were also wearing those kinds of ridiculous sunglasses not unlike what Team Flare had worn.

Ash sprinted around a corner, Pikachu at his heels. He couldn't let those guys get away.

Another corner, and he came to a full stop.

The goons were just there, in the quiet backyard of and old building, loading some supplies into their van.

"Stop right there!" demanded Ash.

When they spotted Ash, they paused and stared. "That's the kid", the other said. They looked at each other, and then back at Ash.

"We need to tell the boss", said the other. "Let's get moving!"

"Pikachu!" yelled Ash. "Use iron tail on the tires!"

As Pikachu was charging, one of the goons threw his poke ball. "Pangoro!" he ordered, as a pangoro appeared from its ball. "Body slam!"

Pikachu's iron tail hit the other pokemon at a weird angle with little effect, and pangoro's body slam sent it flying backwards.

"Pikachu!" shouted Ash, but Pikachu landed well and confirmed it was okay.

"Let's go!" snapped the other grunt, as she slammed the van's back doors closed and ran for the driver's seat.

"Yeah, start the car. Pangoro, use slash!"

"Dodge it Pikachu and use quick attack!"

Pikachu easily ran past the larger pokemon's arms and tackled it straight in the face. The pangoro staggered back, but held strong. "Slash, again!"

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt!"

The engine started, and the car roared to life. "Come on, hurry!" called the woman from the driver's seat.

The grunt returned his pangoro, and Pikachu's thunderbolt scorched the pavement where it had stood. The man ran to the passenger seat and they accelerated.

"Oh no, you don't", yelled Ash and sprinted to the van. He grabbed the back panel and held on as the car shot towards the yard exit.

"Pikapi!"

The car turned a hard left and Ash lost his grip. He was thrown down on the pavement, rolling around until landing in a heap. Dazed, he sat up, head spinning.

Pikachu dashed to him. "Pikapi!" it repeated, worried.

Ash wasn't done. "Rowlet!" he barked and threw the poke ball. Rowlet shot out with a determined screech. "Follow that van!"

"Row, rowlet!"

Only when it had disappeared from his view, Ash slumped back on his hands. "Oh man…"

He looked at Pikachu. "I really hope Rowlet can keep up with the car. Now those guys know we are here. We need to find them, before they find us."

"Pika…"

There was a shout from the edge of the yard. "Ash!"

Ash and Pikachu turned and saw Kiawe, Serena, Lana and Bonnie running towards them. Few paces behind them came Clemont, gasping for breath.

Ash realized he was still sitting on the ground, clothes rumpled and elbows scratched, as Serena kneeled next to him with a worried frown.

"Are you okay?" she asked. "What happened?"

"Who did you see?" asked Lana.

"I'm fine", stated Ash, and forced himself to stand up. He felt somewhat dizzy still but masked it by leaning down and brushing off some of the dust and pebbles from his clothes. "I saw two of Lysandre's grunts, but they got away."

"Pika pipika."

"Yeah, I sent Rowlet after their car. Maybe it can find out where they are heading."

"Good thinking", said Kiawe, as Bonnie asked: "Rowlet?"

"Rowlet is Ash's pokemon from Alola. It's grass and flying type, so it can hopefully follow the car from air", explained Lana.

"So cool!" gasped Bonnie. "I want to meet it! Do you have any other new pokemon, Ash?"

Ash grinned despite himself. "Yeah! You wanna see?"

Before the two got too excited, Serena interjected. "Hey, maybe later, right? It's about lunch time and you three must be hungry. Also, Ash, you're still bleeding."

"She's right", agreed Kiawe. "We should get something to eat and think up a plan."

"We could spend today here in Lumiose City and prepare", suggested Clemont. "We can stay at our home. Dad's away so we have an extra bed free if we decide to also spend the night here."

"Yeah, I guess I'm pretty hungry", Ash admitted, rubbing his stomach. Now that the earlier adrenaline was rapidly leaving his body, he was starting to feel faint and tired. There was no way he was going to get anything done before a good meal and a rest.

"Same for me", nodded Lana. "We left really early in the morning and I'm exhausted. And we haven't eaten anything in almost six hours."

"Yay, let's go have lunch!" Bonnie cheered. "And after that I want to meet all of your pokemon!"

Ash looked down the path where Rowlet had flown off to. He really hoped it would be okay.

Pikachu climbed on his shoulder and nuzzled his neck, giving him wordless encouragement. "Yeah, let's go", he decided. Clemont smiled and instructed everyone to follow him.

 

* * *

 

"All right everybody, come on out!"

"You too, guys!"

Ash and Kiawe threw their poke balls and out came Litten, Lycanroc, Turtonator and Marowak. Charizard, Kiawe explained, was a bit too large to come out indoors.

"Wow!" squealed Bonnie. "So many pokemon!"

Serena and Clemont dug out their poke balls too. "Come out and meet everybody!"

Clemont's Bunnelby, Chespin and Luxray, and Serena's Braixen, Pancham and Sylveon all joined the other pokemon.

"Oh, cool!" marveled Lana. She set Popplio on the living room floor. "Go and have fun with all the others", she encouraged it.

"You can play more with them later, Bonnie", said Clemont to his overly excited sister. "Let's eat lunch first, right? We have some spaghetti in the fridge."

"Awesome!" said Ash, slumping down on the sofa. "Man am I hungry!"

"I can help you prepare the food", offered Kiawe to Clemont, and the two boys disappeared into the kitchen, Lana wandering after them.

Serena dug out a smaller bag from her backpack and walked up to Ash.

"Can I take a look at your arms?"

Ash glanced down and saw that his elbows were covered in dried blood. "Sure", he shrugged. He had already forgotten about the scratches, but he didn't want to accidentally stain Clemont and Bonnie's couch. Serena sat next to him and began wiping them clean.

"How have you been?" she asked quietly. "Really?"

"I've been great!" said Ash with a smile. "Alola is amazing. It's been so relaxing there."

"That's really good to hear", she said honestly. "I had a great time in Hoenn, too. I learned a lot about myself there. Next time, when it's time to compete, I will be ready for the Master Class."

"Yeah!" exclaimed Ash, pumping his fist. "I'm sure you will win this time, Serena!"

"Stay still", she chided, and grabbed his arm to keep it in place. She placed a band-aid on the damaged skin and then paused. She didn't raise her head.

"What it is, Serena?"

Serena twisted his arm around. "What's this bracelet for?" she questioned.

Ash's smile brightened. "Oh yeah! It's for Z-moves!"

"Z-moves?" came Bonnie's voice. She had sneaked up to them and was now leaning over, staring at the Z-ring.

"You won't believe it", grinned Ash. "They are so cool!"

Clemont leaned his head out from the kitchen. "Hey, guys, come to eat already."

 

* * *

 

They got to know each other a bit more during the meal. Ash, Kiawe and Lana explained the Z-moves to the others, and Serena told them about pokemon performances. Clemont told them about what it was like to be a Gym leader, and how he had a self-made robot taking care of the place even at that moment. Bonnie had endless questions about Alolan pokemon.

Stomachs finally full, they resettled on the living room couches and Bonnie plonked down on the floor to play with their pokemon. Ash was instantly ready to doze off as he slumped on the soft couch.

"Yeah, Inferno overdrive", Kiawe was explaining. "That's the Z-move I can do with Turtonator. It's so powerful. It really feels like I'm getting the strength from the Wela volcano!"

Ash was nearly asleep when he heard Clemont ask: "What Z-moves can you do, Ash?"

"Huh?" he mumbled and sat up straighter. "Oh, um… With Pikachu I can do Gigavolt havoc and Breakneck blitz. Litten, Lycanroc and Rowlet know that one too and Rowlet can also do Bloom doom. Oh, and Lycanroc knows Continental crush."

"Yeah, Ash already has four Z-crystals", explained Lana, as the others did a double take. "I have the Waterium Z, so me and Popplio can perform the move Hydro vortex."

"I see…" said Clemont as he tugged at his hair in amazement. "Z-moves sound really cool. I hope you can show them to us some day!"

"I'm sure we will", Kiawe promised. "Hey, can any of you mega evolve you pokemon? That is one of the things I really want to witness while here in Kalos!"

That was the last thing Ash heard before he fell asleep.

 

He had no idea how long it had been when Serena gently shook him awake.

"Hey, you can go sleep in Clemont's room", she said with a gentle smile. "We will just clean up here and then I think Lana and Kiawe are off to have a nap too."

Ash was way too tired to argue, so he just nodded and climbed the stairs up to Clemont's room. Pikachu, equally exhausted, followed him. Ash barely had the sense to drop his backpack on the floor before falling face first on the covers. He was deep asleep just seconds later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright so, I know a lot of you wanted to see Ash's older/stronger pokemon or his friends from earlier regions. I did think about that, and I do love his Charizard and the others as much as anyone, but in my opinion him asking them to join him just doesn't fit with Ash's character.
> 
> Canonically, he is really bad at asking for help. He will accept it, and he will allow his friends to do stupid and dangerous things with him if they want to, but at first hand he will always try to do everything by himself. And he always trusts his current team 100 %, even if it's still new. It might not be the smartest thing to do, but it's Ash. So that's why I have decided to stick with just the Alola and Kalos teams and characters.
> 
> (Also I don't want the cast to get too big, because I want to have enough time to focus on everyone's one-on-one relationships.)


	7. Motivation

Lysandre entered the testing lab and looked around.

He spotted his leading scientist, Mable, leaning over her laptop with a frustrated scowl. He walked up to her and studied her research notes over her shoulder.

"Any progress?" he asked.

Mable angrily pushed the laptop away and leaned her hands on the table. "Nothing", she answered shortly. "None of our test subjects have shown any response markers of bond evolution. We tried everything. That new intern, Hefe, he even actually bonded with that one greninja he caught few weeks ago. He's been training with it every day and being all best buddies with it, but it won't evolve further. The energy pulse we developed and built for months? It just does nothing."

Lysandre ground his teeth together. He was starting to get really impatient with his team. "And the new mega wave jewel?"

Mable clenched her hand into fists. "There are still problems with the power output. Alva's notes are incomplete. We think some of the pages got left behind during the raid."

"Then figure it out yourselves!" roared Lysandre. "Are you scientists or not? This was supposed to be done weeks ago!"

It took a lot of effort from Mable to not flinch. She nodded instead, pulling the laptop back to her and clicking open the mega wave jewel data. "I'm on it, sir", she quickly said.

Lysandre turned away from her and paced through the lab. All the other scientists hunched over their work, avoiding eye contact. Lysandre stepped into the hallway and slammed the lab door closed behind him.

He only had time to stand there and fume for a second before one of his subordinates came sprinting down the corridor. The man stopped in front of him, breathing hard. Lysandre stared him down until he recovered enough to stand up straight again.

"Sir", he began, frantic. "As you know, I was in Lumiose City with Celosia this morning. We – um – we saw the kid, you know, Ash? He was just there! He even attacked us with his pikachu!"

Lysandre blinked, slowly drawing up to his full height. "You saw him where, exactly? What was he doing? Who was he with?"

The man shrugged. "Near the warehouse where we get supplies, you know? I think he followed us. He appeared out of nowhere. And he was alone, you know, except for that pikachu he always has with him."

Lysandre hummed. He's mind was already leaving the conversation to think up a new plan. He turned away and began walking towards his office. "Good job", he said over his shoulder.

He grinned. It was time to start the preparations.

 

* * *

 

This time, it was not Pikachu who woke Ash up.

He stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling, wondering why his heart was beating faster than usual. A nightmare? He didn't think so. Something had woken him up just then.

Ash sat up and looked around the room. It was brightly lit with daylight, and he was quickly reminded by the furnishing and the pieces of machinery all over the place that he was in Clemont's room. Next to him, Pikachu woke up and looked around equally confused until it, too, remembered.

"I think I heard something", Ash said in a low voice. He stood up, picking up his backpack and rolling his stiff shoulders.

"Pika?" questioned Pikachu, but it got up too and jumped on his shoulder. Ash shared a look with it.

"Let's go check outside", he said.

He quietly descended the stairs and headed for the front door, stepping outside. The weather had warmed considerably from the morning, and Ash instantly felt better with the sunlight on his face.

"Where are you going?" came a voice behind him. "Are you trying to sneak off?"

Ash turned around and saw Bonnie standing there at the doorway, hands on her hips.

Ash frowned. "No, I'm not sneaking off." He glanced around. "I just woke up and thought I heard something from outside. You wanna help me look?"

Bonnie's expression brightened. "Yeah!" she ran up to him and twirled around, checking the surroundings. "Wait, what are we looking for?"

"I'm not sure…"

They walked down the street until they came to the plaza next to the Prism Tower. Ash leaned back to look up to the Tower but out of nowhere, the sight made his stomach drop and he had to quickly turn his head away. He felt faintly ill.

"Pikapi?"

"I'm fine", Ash mumbled, leaning his hands on his knees and breathing deeply. After a minute, he straightened his back and found Bonnie looking at him with concern.

"You okay?" she asked. She glanced at the Prism Tower and then back at Ash.

Ash nodded. "Yeah, I just…" he braved a look back at the Tower. There, at the bottom of it, he saw a tourist stall selling books like 'The Kalos Crisis: What Really Happened?'. With a shudder, Ash turned back to Bonnie.

"I guess I kinda forgot all of it took place right here."

Bonnie smiled slightly. "I know, right? So much has happened here. And not just the Crisis. I still remember when you climbed the Tower and saved Garchomp. I was so scared for you two! It's funny to think we barely even knew each other back then."

The change of topic was a relief and Ash grinned. "Right? That was a great day! I'm really glad I was able to help Garchomp. And Clemont's gym is awesome." He gazed up at the Tower, spotting the ledge where he and Alain had faced Lysandre. "It's kinda strange now. The Tower looks the same as it did before, but I just got this weird feeling…"

Bonnie shrugged thoughtfully. "Yeah, it has been weird. After we came back from the Azoth Kingdom and you and Serena left, everything here was almost back to normal. But I still felt like the place was different somehow. Something has changed, and I don't think I will ever love the city as much as I used to."

"I get it. It's such a beautiful city but everything here reminds me of… The thing is, when I left Kalos, I was sure I would never have to think about Lysandre again", said Ash quietly.

Bonnie had this piercing look in her eyes when she looked up at him. "You know, you never really told us what happened when you were up in the Tower with Alain and Lysandre."

Ash glanced at her with wide eyes. "I didn't?" he asked nervously.

He was so glad when the distraction came. It came in the form of Rowlet, swooping down from the sky and screeching in excitement.

"Rowlet!" Ash yelled, and Pikachu only just had the time to jump away before the little owl crashed into his chest, sending them both on the ground. Ash laughed and hugged it tightly, before grabbing it with one arm and using the other to push himself back up.

"Wow, so that's a rowlet!" squealed Bonnie, crowding in to have a look at it. "So cute!"

Rowlet was babbling and flapping its wings frantically.

"You were looking for me?" asked Ash. "I though I heard your voice! You must have flown past Clemont and Bonnie's house!"

Rowlet struggled free from his arms and flew few meters into the air. "Rowlet row row!"

"You found which way they were going?"

Rowlet flew an anxious circle in the air and pointed somewhere towards southeast. Ash and Bonnie shared a look and sprinted back to the house.

 

* * *

 

Clemont was standing anxiously at the front door when he spotted Ash, Bonnie and Pikachu running towards him. They looked fine, if only a bit ruffled, and Ash had a small round pokemon in his arms.

"Where have you been?" he demanded, when they reached the porch. "Team Flare – I mean Lysandre and his new goons – they could be anywhere! You disappeared, and I was getting worried!"

"Sorry, big bro", chirped Bonnie, as Ash pushed past him with a determined pace, Pikachu at his heels.

"Don't worry, we were just there", he was saying distractedly. "Anyway, where are Lana and Kiawe? We should get going."

Clemont spun around on his heels. "Wait, what? We are leaving now?"

Ash was already gone. "Do you have a tent we could borrow?" he called from the living room. "We probably need to spend few nights in the forest."

"Ash's Rowlet came back", explained Bonnie, when Clemont had stared into space for long enough. "It can show us the right direction."

She started climbing the stairs to go up to her room. Clemont ran after her. "Wait, Bonnie! Don't you think this is a bit too fast?" he questioned nervously. "Ash only slept for few hours and we didn't even make any plans yet! We can't just rush into a situation like this one. It's too dangerous!"

Bonnie stopped in the middle of the stairs and turned to stare him in the eye, hands on her hips. Even standing a few steps above him, she was still slightly shorter, but no less imposing. "Listen, big bro. We have travelled before. We have faced Lysandre before. Also, we beat that Alvin guy, or whatever his name was, who had the mega evolution machine. We know barely anything about Ash's past, but I know for sure that what we have seen is _nothing_ compared to him." She cocked her head to the side, looking years older than she was. Clemont felt incredibly proud and incredibly terrified at the same time. "If Ash is leaving now, you know there's no stopping him. You just gotta choose if you are gonna follow him."

Clemont worried his lip for a moment longer, until he came to decision. He nodded with new determination. "You're right, Bonnie. Of course I'm going to follow. I think I just got scared for a minute."

Bonnie smiled gently. "I know, and it's okay. I'm scared too, you know? But more than that, I want to help Ash and Greninja. That's what important, and that's why I'm not gonna hesitate."

Clemont could only nod, speechless.

"C'mon, let's go pack, right?" said Bonnie, and together, they climbed the rest of the way up.

 

* * *

 

Forty-five minutes later, the group arrived at the front door of Sycamore's lab. Pikachu perched on his shoulder, Ash pushed the door open, and they stepped into the quiet and chilly front hall.

"Alain?" called Ash and Pikachu let out a similar sound. "Are you here?"

Serena joined them. "Alain, it's us!"

After a minute, they could hear hurried steps from upstairs. Then, Alain appeared at the top of the stairs. Serena had seen him briefly when he had called her to meet Ash at the airport, but he looked even more worn out in real life. He had a scruffy beginning of a beard and tired eyes, but he broke into an honest smile when he saw who they were.

"Ash!" he called and descended the stairs quickly. "Clemont, Bonnie, Serena! Great to see you!"

"Good to see you too!" they said back. Ash stepped to the side and waved a hand towards his Alolan friends. "These are Lana and Kiawe. They are from the Alola region!"

"Nice to meet you two", said Alain politely.

"Nice to meet you", said Kiawe.

"Yeah, nice to meet you", nodded Lana. She looked around into the silent and dark hallways. "You are here all alone?"

"Yes, for now", said Alain. "Lysandre's men, they uh… they trashed the place. Most of the equipment in the lab is ruined. I had to send the lab assistants onto a leave until I figure out how to get everything back up. Most of my time currently is spent with paperwork and looking after the pokemon living on the compound."

"Wow, sorry to hear it", gasped Serena. "It must be hard taking care of everything by yourself."

"Is Professor Sycamore still unwell?" asked Ash in a tight voice.

Alain nodded with a frown. "I didn't tell Professor Kukui all the details, but during the raid, Sycamore got stabbed in the stomach. He's feeling better now, but things were critical for a long time. He won't be able to work for a long time still. And I really don't want him to."

"That's terrible!" Clemont exclaimed, setting his hand on Bonnie's shoulder almost like on instinct. "We have to get those goons to pay for that."

"Yeah, and you will", agreed Alain. He turned to Ash. "Ash, I know why you are doing this, and I approve it. I would come with you if I had any options. But as it is, you really must be careful. They stole all the research about your bond evolution, and everything about mega evolution that they could get their hands on. They are planning something big."

"I get it", Ash said. "We will be careful."

"I don't think you actually do understand", insisted Alain. "There have been reports all over Kalos about pokemon hunters, way more than ever before. Recently, couple of wild greninja approached the southern police station asking for help, because so many from their group had gone missing. Wild greninja! That just doesn't happen!

"And now your Greninja has been taken. Lysandre tortured it so badly your bond connection broke. He has all the research about something only you, specifically, can do! I _know_ you remember what he said to you in the Tower. What he tried to do even then. Ash, it's bad. I just need you to think about this carefully, and not do anything rash."

Ash's eyes were razor sharp as he stared up at Alain. "I get it", he said again, and Serena got the urge to take a step back. This was a side of Ash that rarely was shown, and it was always a shock. Sometimes, he let it slip that here was something deeper in the goofy kid appearance than what he chose to show to the world.

"You know I know what's at stake", Ash was saying to Alain. "I really do. But I also know what I gotta do. I'm not scared of Lysandre. He can do whatever he wants, but I'm not leaving Greninja in his hands. I will be careful, I promise, but you know there is nothing I wouldn't do to save it."

"I know, Ash", said Alain quietly. "And that's what I'm afraid of."

"We will do everything we can to help!" Kiawe stepped in, breaking the tension slightly. "Ash won't be alone. He's got all of us!"

"Yeah!" cheered Bonnie. "We are in this together!"

Alain looked at Ash for a moment longer, worry evident in his expression, until he sighed and rolled his shoulders, looking at the group as a whole.

"Alright, come with me", he said. "I have some extra supplies for you."

With varying degrees of enthusiasm, the group followed him deeper into the lab.

 

* * *

 

"So, what did you say about the greninja?" asked Ash, when he and Alain were the only ones left in the storage room, the others having already migrated into the kitchen.

Alain raised his eyebrows. "Those near the south station?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, those who asked for Officer Jenny's help. What's happening to all the greninja?"

"We don't know", said Alain with a frown. "My theory is that Lysandre and his team are behind it. For some reason, they are collecting greninja. Maybe that's why he took your Greninja, too. He couldn't have known that it stayed behind when you left Kalos. It was probably just a happy accident for Lysandre."

Ash was quiet for a while. "I think Greninja went looking for Lysandre", he said then. His gaze was down, shoulders tight. "It knew something was still going on, even though everyone else stopped searching for him. That day, before it got caught… it tried to tell me something. It must have known it had found Lysandre."

"I'm sorry Ash", said Alain, and Ash finally looked up at him, his eyes steely. "I know you must be really worried. What I said earlier… Don't get me wrong - I know you are taking this seriously, I do, but this is different than what Lysandre was planning before. This is personal. Against _you_. I just needed to know that you understand that."

"Yeah, I know", Ash said easily. "Thanks for worrying. But I will be okay!"

Alain admired his optimism, but it didn't really do anything to settle the uneasy feeling he was having about the whole thing. But he supposed there probably wasn't much else he could do to prevent Ash from charging headfirst into a trap.

They were picking up the last supplies from the room when Serena peeked her head trough the doorway. "Oh, here you are! Come eat, we made snacks!"

 

* * *

 

It was already late afternoon when they finally reached the southeast edge of the Lumiose City. Ahead of them a gravel road stretched into the far forest and beyond that, the peaks of mountains could be seen. It really hit Serena then – they were actually doing this. She was travelling with Ash again. And this time, they were heading into danger purposefully. Yeah, they had faced danger before, and it had always been fine in the end but… She had to admit she felt nervous. Excited about the adventure, sure, about her old and new friends. But what Alain had said to Ash back there… She hadn't known about even half of it. Sycamore's condition? Greninja getting tortured? And for the millionth time since that day, she wondered what had happened in the Tower. She was starting to realize about just how many things Ash was keeping them in the dark of.

"Come out, Rowlet!" called Ash. He was few paces ahead of them, facing the distance. The Alolan owl pokemon shot out and flew into the air with an excited spin.

"It was this way, right?" Ash asked, and the pokemon nodded. Ash grinned. "Great job! You can fly with us if you want to, but if you're tired I can put you back in the ball, right?"

Rowlet flew around him and sat on top of his fully packed backpack. It looked down at it with confusion.

"Yeah, I'm sorry Rowlet, but I don't have any space for you in there", Ash laughed. "The holiday is over for now. Kalos is way different than Alola. You will see."

Rowlet spun its head in obvious puzzlement. Serena wanted to giggle about how cute it was. It really was such an Ash pokemon.

"Roww, rowlet", it chirped eventually, and hopped on Ash's head. There, it sighed happily and closed its eyes.

Still smiling, Ash shrugged with amusement. With the snoozing bird on his head and Pikachu settled on his shoulder, he turned to the rest of the group. "Let's go then, right guys?"

He was quite the comical sight, and Serena couldn't help her grin.

"Yeah, let's go", she agreed. The excitement was starting to take over, leaving the nervousness and doubt in its shadow.

"I'm ready", said Lana. She had the popplio in her arms, and it let out a similar agreement.

"Yup, I'm ready too", stated Bonnie, and Clemont added a quieter "Yeah, me too".

"Denene!"

"Come on then", Kiawe grinned and started jogging down the path. The others followed suit, expect Clemont, who looked after them in horror.

"Hold on, guys! We aren't going to run the whole way, are we?"


	8. Secrets

They spent the first night in a pokemon center.

It was already dark outside, the sun having set hours ago. It was quiet at the cafeteria's table as everyone finished eating their burgers. The atmosphere was drowsy, pensive. Ash gulped down the last of his soda and looked around. Pikachu was on the table, licking his plate clean of any excess ketchup. Bonnie was whispering to Dedenne as she fed it pieces of her fries. Serena stared at her half-eaten burger, a deep frown on her face, while Clemont doodled in his notebook, only pausing occasionally to yawn into his hand. Kiawe had spread the map of Kalos on the corner of the table, although Ash could tell he wasn't really studying it, the look in his eyes distant. And Lana was…

She was looking at him.

"You should call your mom", she said quietly, when Ash gave her a curious look.

Ash rubbed his neck. "Oh, um, maybe a bit later", he said nervously. He knew his mom was going to be mad at him, and he really was too tired to argue with her.

Lana didn't back off. "We probably won't stay in a pokemon center tomorrow, and you shouldn't call her with our pokegear from the forest. Here you will have a good connection and a screen, so she can see you."

Ash hesitated still. "I could call her in the morning, before we leave."

"It would be already late in Kanto then and she might be in bed", Lana argued. She had a disapproving look on her face. "Come on Ash, go call her now."

"Oh man, I guess you're right", sighed Ash. He stood up and noticed everyone was now looking at him. As Pikachu clambered on his shoulder, he shrugged and aimed for a casual grin. "I'll see you guys in the morning, right? You should go to bed and I'll come after… after I've called my mom."

"Yeah, all right", Kiawe said, and the others nodded along. They were watching him with barely hidden curiosity Ash wasn't willing to examine just then, so he nodded one last time and slipped into the reception hall where the phone booths were located.

He missed his mom, as he always did, but he really didn't want to talk to her about Lysandre. About any of the things that had happened to him in the past two days, let alone during the Crisis. He had barely mentioned Greninja to her when he had come home after Kalos. She knew he got into dangerous situations wherever he went, and she knew he was keeping quiet about a lot of them. She had, after all, even been involved in few incidents herself.

But she also knew there was nothing she could do about it. So, it was easier to just ignore it, brush the bad under the carpet and focus on the good instead. Ash's new pokemon, his friends, his visits to Kanto. How he was doing with the gyms or more recently, in school.

But, Ash supposed, as his finger hovered over the call button, it might be harder to pretend everything was going great after the calls Professor Kukui had made to his mom. Usually, when things were bad, there was no one to contact her. And Ash preferred to call her only after the bruises had faded and tell her about the awesome new legendary he had seen, or the great adventure he had experienced.

But he had promised to call, to Professor Kukui and to Lana, so he pressed the button and waited.

 

It didn't take long before her face popped up on the screen.

"Hi mom", he had time to say, before she exploded.

"Ash Ketchum", she began, hands on her hips and eyes piercing. "You finally had the sense to call. What were you thinking? Do you have any idea how worried you made the Professor? You left Alola in the middle of the night! How did you think that would be a good idea? Poor Kukui was almost crying when he called me. I really hope you apologized to him."

"Sorry, mom", Ash grumbled.

"I wish you wouldn't do these things", she continued with a calmer voice, though she was still clearly exasperated with him. Ash did recognize the worry and relief under the angry demeanor, so he wasn't too bothered. It was great to see his mom again.

On his shoulder, Pikachu perked up. "Pika!" it said, and Delia was instantly smiling.

"Oh, Pikachu! Hi there!" She waived her hand and Pikachu made a happy noise in response.

Ash decided to use the moment to his advantage, so he quickly said: "So anyway mom, I just called 'cos we just left Lumiose City and we probably won't visit any pokemon centers in a while. But I'm with Lana and Kiawe and Serena, Bonnie and Clemont are here too! So, we will be fine. I just wanted to- "

"Why are you back in Kalos?" Delia asked then. She wasn't smiling any more, and she looked… Ash wasn't sure. She looked tired, and serious and… scared. Ash felt his answer die in his throat.

"It isn't about the Crisis, right?" his mom continued, when he didn't answer straight away. "Ash? It was already over last year, when you came back home, wasn't it?"

"Mom…"

"Why do you always need to get involved?" Her voice was wavering now, even if she did her best to appear stern. "It was over, and you were safe, and… Just tell me this has nothing to do with it."

He couldn't. "I'm sorry, mom", he said quietly, and something in her eyes crumbled. Ash took a breath. "I really did think it was over. But there's still something I gotta do. It's… You don't have to worry. I'll be fine."

"I know you will." Her eyes were shiny, and she blinked a few times. "I'm glad you have your friends with you. And Pikachu, as always."

Pikachu nodded, and Delia looked straight at it. "Take care of Ash, alright?"

"Pika pikachu!"

Ash stifled a yawn. "I'm going to bed now", he said. "I'll call you later."

"Make sure you do", she answered. "Good night, Ash. Be careful."

"I will. Good night, mom."

They managed one last smile at each other, and then the call ended. Ash stared at the dark screen for a long while before picking up his bag and finding his way into his room.

 

* * *

 

The morning came bright and chilly, and everyone was in a much better mood.

After breakfast, Lana was sitting on the front steps of the building, playing with Popplio. It was clear that the young pokemon was still slightly confused what was going on, and why they had left Alola in such a hurry. Still, it had picked up on Lana's curious energy and was eagerly exploring the new surroundings.

"Popplio, I think I will put you in the poke ball when it's time to leave", Lana said. Popplio looked at her in surprise, and it stopped playing, hopping up to her. "Pop?"

"We will be walking for the whole day and you would get tired. And I have a heavy backpack to carry."

Popplio looked disappointed for a moment, but it nodded eventually. Lana picked it up and hugged it.

"I knew you would understand", she smiled, burying her face into its neck for a moment. "When we take a break, you can come out, of course. Kalos is… it seems great, the nature here is really pretty, but it's not like Alola. I'll make sure to find you a lake or a river, so you can have a swim at some point."

"Popplio pop!" Popplio cooed happily.

Lana heard a voice behind her: "You're ready to go already?"

She turned around and saw Serena stepping out of the center. Lana nodded, patting her full backpack. "Yeah, I got everything here."

Serena sat next to her, turning her face to the chilly, gentle wind. Smiling, she closed her eyes. "Oh, such a nice weather today."

"Yeah", agreed Lana. It was so early in the morning that the sun was still hidden behind the trees, but the sky was cloudless and luminous above them. "A bit cold, though", she added, rubbing her bare arms.

Serena laughed, bright and friendly. "I guess you're used to a much warmer weather in Alola, huh? I hope you got a sweater with you; the nights can get a bit chilly."

"Yup, don't worry", said Lana. She leaned on her hands, staring up at the vast sky. A single cloud was floating in the distance, and Lana imagined it looked a bit like a Kyogre. "Anyway, I don't really mind the cold. I love water type pokemon. Exploring the sea is my favorite thing to do, and the water does get freezing when you go deep enough."

"Wow, that's cool", said Serena, sounding genuinely impressed. "Is it your dream to be a water type trainer?"

Lana shrugged. "Not sure yet. I only have Popplio so far, so I don't have much experience with training. I mean, I used to think I would only get water types but spending time with Ash has kind of changed my mind. His team is amazing, even though he doesn't choose what he's gonna catch by the type at all." She frowned, thinking about it. "Well, I guess he doesn't really choose, period. The pokemon just come to _him_ , it seems like."

This time, Serena slapped a hand on her mouth as the laugh burst out of her. "Oh, tell me about it." She smiled to herself for a moment. "Huh, seriously though, I guess he only caught Talonflame – I mean, Fletchling – with an actual battle. And he hatched Noivern from an egg. But the other three just kinda… decided on their own accord that they wanted to join him. It really opens your eyes, doesn't it?"

Thoughtful, Lana nodded. "I think that's what I'm going to aim for, too. I want to earn the pokemon's trust before I catch it. The type shouldn't be the first thing that makes me decide. I want the pokemon to feel so safe and happy with me that it wants to stay."

"You are going to be an amazing trainer, Lana", Serena said softly.

The door clicked behind them and the rest of their group burst out, chatting and laughing. Ash, as hyper as ever, hopped down the three steps in one jump, landed badly on the gravel and almost fell on his face with a strangled yelp. Pikachu dashed after him, ears down with second-hand embarrassment.

"Oh, here you girls are", grinned Bonnie. She leaned casually against Serena's shoulders and they watched the scene with amusement. A mechanical hand had come out of Clemont's backpack and was now dangling Ash in the air by the back of his shirt. Bonnie giggled. "Well, at least Ash is excited."

Lana couldn't help her wide smile.

This just might turn out to be fun.

 

* * *

 

"You know, me and Bonnie never really thought we would go travelling", Clemont said to Kiawe as they trailed behind Ash and the girls. "Well, at least not in many years, and not together. I always knew Bonnie would leave the second she got her first own pokemon, but I was pretty happy just managing my gym and inventing things. I guess I didn't know any better."

Kiawe considered his words for a minute. "That thing about travelling, it's a bit different in Alola. You know, we don't have that whole pokemon journey you do. Of course some of us leave and travel through other regions, but most Alolan people live their whole lives on the Islands. And those who want to challenge themselves participate in the Island challenge, but that's about it."

Clemont chuckled. "Oh, don't get me wrong, I didn't understand the itch some kids my age had for travelling either, not until last year." He gazed ahead to the very familiar image of his friends' backs as they walked ahead of him, on their way to somewhere unknown and unexpected. He sighed, smiling almost wistfully. "It's weird. You can't really fathom what makes the experience so special, not before it's over. But when it is over, you just feel… restless. Aimless. Like you need to rethink your whole life."

"Did you?" asked Kiawe, and as Clemont raised a questioning eyebrow, he added: "Rethink your life?"

"Oh yeah, I guess we all kind of did", Clemont said after a short pause. "I had to rebuild Clembot from scratch and manage a gym in a building that had been used as a Team Flare base. Serena left her whole life behind and went to find herself in another region. Bonnie… she's – she's older somehow, and Dedenne is basically hers already. She really grew years during our less-than-a-year trip."

"I think your journey might have been slightly more dramatic than the usual", Kiawe said with a touch of humor. "Didn't it end with the Crisis? I can't imagine that going back to normal life after that could have been easy."

Clemont glanced at him, surprised. Then he let out a short laugh, the tone somewhere between nervous and dismissive. "It didn't end there, but yes, I guess the Crisis was a big part of it. Not really the part I want to remember it by, though. But it definitely did change my life, and in more ways than one."

Kiawe noticed how Clemont had the same vague way of talking about the Crisis as Ash had, but he decided to not press any further. Instead, he chose another topic.

"What else happened during the journey, then? Did you meet any legendaries?" He remembered the conversation from the previous day, and added: "Besides Zygarde, I mean."

Clemont grinned, but quickly turned his head away and got more serious. "Oh, um", he choked out, even if it was clear he had wanted to say something else. He glanced at Kiawe, brows furrowed. "Yeah. Yeah, we did meet some legendaries. But I think those are stories that we should tell you together, and at a better time."

 _How mysterious_. Kiawe could feel the annoyance rising in him. Still, he nodded, letting out an acknowledging sound. He could understand that the event where the sighting happened must have been pretty overwhelming for Clemont and the others. After all, he could distinctly remember how he had felt when Tapu Koko first appeared in front of them, in plain daylight, and challenged Ash to a battle.

As a silence settled between them again, Kiawe got the feeling they weren't really on the same wavelength with Clemont. He didn't think Clemont was being intentionally rude, and he did like the guy, but something was off about their conversation. Maybe it was a Kalos thing, this unwillingness to speak about personal experiences. Or maybe it was an Alolan thing, to ask too many questions and then overshare. _Or maybe_ , thought Kiawe, as the vivid image of Ash leaping off the edge of the school yard flashed in front of his eyes, _it was an Ash thing_.

Things seemed to happen around Ash that were hard to explain, and Ash definitely got himself into these situations way more often than what was normal. Thinking about this, Kiawe realized then that he had only known Ash for a few months, and those months had been way more exciting and eventful than his whole life before that.

If you spent almost a year on the road with him…

Kiawe swallowed, the truth of it finally dawning on him. Yeah. There would be stories to tell. Probably too many to sort through. Especially when they needed to focus on the immediate threat that was Lysandre and his plans with Greninja.

His musings were interrupted with a shout from the group ahead.

"Wow, a waterfall!"

Kiawe could only watch as Ash and Lana sprinted off the path and into the thick forest. He and Clemont jogged up to Bonnie and Serena, who were standing on the spot with exasperated smiles.

"I think it's about time for lunch, anyway", chuckled Serena, still looking into the woods. Following her gaze, Kiawe could see the shapes of their friends joyfully kneeling over a glimmering river.

"I think you are right", agreed Clemont, and together they trekked into the flickering shadows of the lush forest.


	9. Trapped

Greninja was slowly going insane.

It had been in the small room for at least three full days now, staring at the metal walls and floor, the only light streaming in from the small opening in the door, located slightly above its eye-level. The light was constant, unchanging – Greninja had no concept of day and night anymore. It could only count the passage of time by the quick, regular interactions it had had since its capture, that was, when one of the faceless, nameless men slipped food and water through a gap at the foot of the door.

It had been there since it had woken up after Lysandre’s torture. Well, Greninja assumed it had been meant as torture, though the only thing it had accomplished was the bond breaking between Ash and it, pushing them both into deep unconsciousness. Greninja didn’t regret standing up to Lysandre, but it did regret having caused so much pain to Ash. Maybe, if it had surrendered when Ash had asked it to, they might still have their connection – a private upper hand to Lysandre. But, even when it had woken up shaking and weak and _all alone_ , it had at least known Lysandre couldn’t use it to hurt Ash any more.

 

Greninja was just finishing its evening routine: fifty rounds jogging around the room, fifty walking. The fifty jumps it had quite not managed this time – it had got up to forty when suddenly the world had tilted and faded around it, the exhaustion and malnutrition making it weaker every day, the collar around its midsection heavy and suffocating. And still, despite all that, it craved sunlight more than proper food, the fresh waters of Kalos rivers more than a soft place to sleep. Greninja sat down on the edge of its dingy bed, blocking these thoughts from its mind.

It would do no good to daydream.

Greninja needed a plan. And it needed it fast. After what they had experienced few days ago, Ash wouldn’t sit around for long. Not that he sat around ever, but especially when his friends were in trouble, there really was no doubt he would appear, sooner rather than later. Greninja wished this time he would think first, have an actual plan before running into Lysandre’s lap, but that was probably wistful thinking. Ash’s stubborn loyalty, his _need_ to help others over his own well-being, that was after all one of the biggest reasons Greninja had chosen Ash as its human partner.

Greninja needed to be ready for Ash’s arrival. It had no idea how far away it could be from Ash to evolve, or if they needed to physically see each other before it could happen, but it sure was going to try it as soon as Ash had arrived in the general area. Every time someone approached its cell, Greninja would sit in absolute silence, trying to pick up anything that might reveal that Ash had reached Kalos. So far it had been unsuccessful, the grunts coming alone and as silent as Greninja was. There were no other sounds it could hear either – it must be locked away in the deeper levels or somewhere out of the way from the actual labs and common areas. That might turn out to be useful in the case it somehow got out of this room. The less there were humans blocking its way, the faster it could fight its way out.

An hour later, there was the familiar click of a door opening at the end of the hallway, and Greninja sat up straighter. It could hear voices talking to each other in low voice – that was new. There were at least two pairs of steps approaching, and Greninja faced the door warily. Soon, a face blocked half of the opening in the door, and Greninja saw a familiar grey eye peeking through.

Lysandre.

Greninja stood up, despite knowing well that it couldn’t attack Lysandre in its current state. It was way too weak to, and even if it weren’t, the oppressive weigh around its stomach drove the point home.

“You will behave, right?” Lysandre drawled, mild amusement in his voice. Greninja stayed silent, and after a low buzzing sound, the door opened, and Lysandre stepped in. Just the sheer size of him in the tiny room was imposing, but the way he was backlit by the lights in the hallway made Greninja want to take a step back. It didn’t, even when it could feel its hands shaking at its sides. Greninja balled them into fists.

“I see you are still acting quite defiant”, Lysandre remarked. Greninja tilted its head back, studying the man’s face. He looked relaxed, an easy grin on his pale lips. “I wouldn’t have thought otherwise. You are Ash’s pokemon after all, aren’t you? He must have trained you well.”

Greninja hated the way he talked to it, like it was a lesser being and thus stupid. Of course Greninja knew this already about Lysandre, but being so vulnerable in front of him and having to just take it… It was crushing. It made Greninja very pissed off and it wanted to show the human just _how_ aware it was.

Instead, it folded its hands in front of it, nodding shortly. _‘He did.’_

Lysandre looked momentarily surprised before getting himself back under control. This was the first time Greninja had spoken to him. Lysandre smiled widely. “So, you are willing to talk, then? I have some questions for you, and I would love to hear your insight. You won’t have to answer them today, of course, but in that case, I’m forced to put you back into this room.”

Greninja nodded again and added _‘I understand’_ out loud as well, just to get that disgustingly pleased reaction out of Lysandre. There was a plan forming in its mind. It had no power sitting all alone in this cell – but outside of it? Well, it might be even worse, but there was only one way to find out.

And this might be the only way to find out more about Ash.

“How wonderful”, said Lysandre, clapping his hands together. He grinned with all his teeth; a true predator’s smile. “I really hated locking you into this room like some lowlife animal, but you must understand that I only did what was necessary. You were out of control and needed to calm down. I see that you have, now.”

Seething with barely contained anger, Greninja managed a quiet nod and then let its gaze fall to the floor, imitating a compliant posture. It could feel Lysandre’s eyes on it, studying it intensely.

“Let’s take a walk”, the man said then, stepping back from the doorway. “I have something to show you.”

 

* * *

 

Ash lay flat on the ground, staring up at the darkening night sky.

He had been in a good mood today, loving the feeling of a gravel road under his feet and the adventure ahead of him. But the reality of it was creping on him now, as everyone else had fallen asleep, exhausted from the day’s journey, and he couldn’t stop thinking about Greninja.

If he was travelling alone, Ash knew, he would have run the whole way, going on minimal sleep. On some level on consciousness, he did understand what Alain had tried to warn him about, what he had meant when he had tried to make him slow down, but he found out he didn’t much care. Trap or not, he was getting Greninja out of there. Even if it meant he would get in trouble instead – well, better him than anyone else, right? Frustrated, Ash turned onto his side, disturbing Pikachu snoozing against his leg.

“Pikapi?” it asked quietly. It must have spotted the scowl on his face, because it crawled closer, nudging his arm.

“I’m sorry I woke you up”, Ash mumbled, wrapping an arm around his friend. Pikachu, instead of answering, nuzzled closer to his chest and sighed sleepily. Ash smiled down at it, and his heart felt slightly lighter.

Thinking about all the times they had laid like this together, happy and content, he finally allowed himself to fall asleep.

 

“Wake up everyone! Quick, Bonnie, get up! Serena!”

Ash’s eyes were impossibly heavy with sleep, and it took him a minute to understand what Clemont was saying. The blonde was talking in a hushed, agitated voice, going around the camp shaking the others awake, all the while gathering up their things.

Kiawe, his hair sticking in every direction, eyes drooping, pushed his sleeping bad aside and sat up. “What’s going on? Clemont?”

Everyone was now awake, watching in exhausted confusion as Clemont furiously stuffed away their cooking utensils.

“I was up the road, I… um, I woke up and took a walk, and I saw a white van parked just there and a couple of people looking around in the woods! I think they were Lysandre’s men!”

This got everyone to wake up, and it took them only minutes to pack their backs, call in their pokemon and wipe out any signs they had ever been in that place. They had just sneaked deeper into the forest when Ash heard voices behind them, talking in clipped, but still casual tone. They crouched behind a large rock formation and hoped they had gotten far enough to avoid confrontation.

“You’re sure your Fletchinder saw a camp around here?” asked the other with a deep gravelly voice.

“Of course I’m sure”, answered the other, his voice a much younger one. “It wouldn’t lie to me. I told it to only come back if it spotted the kid, and today it did, and it led us here. It must have seen something.”

“It could have spotted anything as far as I know!” the older man roared. “That bird is still young and honestly, it doesn’t seem too smart. Maybe it saw some other kid run through here and flew back to report that!”

The younger one hesitated at that. “Let’s just check around, okay? We can’t know for sure if we don’t at least do that.”

The older man sighed with frustration but let out an agreeing grunt. Slowly, they circled the camp area, idly talking, and it was only Serena’s firm grip on his arm that kept Ash from leaping around the rock and challenging them into a battle there and then.  

Finally, after what felt like hours, the voices faded back towards the main road and the kids could breathe again.

“They were looking for Ash”, said Lana, her voice odd.

“What? We knew that already”, frowned Kiawe.

As everyone turned to look at Lana, she drew herself up straighter. “I mean, they were _only_ looking for Ash.”

Ash looked around and saw realization dawning on Clemont’s face, but he still didn’t get the point. Luckily, Clemont finished the thought: “They still don’t know we are with him!”

“They think I’m coming alone?” asked Ash with wide eyes.

“Oh, but that’s good!” said Serena, clasping her hands. “If they are only preparing for Ash, we still have a chance to surprise them!”

“Yeah, that’s true!” agreed Bonnie.

“It’s not good that they are searching from the air”, said Clemont with a serious expression. “On the main path we will be easy to spot, and they most likely have seen a reference photo of Ash and Pikachu. Pikachu aren’t that uncommon in Kalos, but not many have them as primary partners, so it will draw attention.”

Ash and Pikachu shared a look, and Pikachu clambered up on his shoulder. It wasn’t happy to hear it might be putting Ash and the others in bigger danger.

Kiawe raised his eyebrows and waved a hand towards them. “Just put Pikachu in the pokeball while we are on the road. And you can walk behind us, so it will be harder for their flying pokemon to recognize you.”

“The thing is, Pikachu doesn’t go in the pokeball”, answered Ash with a shrug. Pikachu looked down, uncomfortable.

Lana and Kiawe stared at him. “What do you mean? I’m sure it can manage few hours at a time”, said Kiawe incredulously.

“I’m not putting Pikachu in the pokeball”, replied Ash, steel in his voice, and Kiawe backed off.

“Alright”, he allowed, still sounding slightly dubious, “then we need another plan.”

The others had followed their exchange with mild concern. Serena cleared her throat, wringing her hands in front of her. “I might be able to make some sort of disguise for Pikachu”, she suggested, though it almost sounded like a question.

Clemont stepped closer. “I don’t have much stuff with me, but I could also try to design something.”

“You should make a disguise for Ash, too”, Lana said to Serena. Serena looked at her, surprised, and soon they were both smiling slyly.

“Man, I dunno about all this”, huffed Ash, getting frustrated from all the standing around. “Maybe I should just go alone. If they spot me with you, then our plan is ruined. But if I get into trouble by myself, then you can still come help.”

Everyone was staring at him now like he had grown a second head. Ash didn’t get what the big deal was, so he ignored them and turned to Pikachu. “Right, buddy? I kinda feel like running. I can’t wait to get there fast and see Greninja again!”

A hand on his arm made him stop rambling and turn his head. Serena was looking at him with wide eyes. “Ash, just… hold on”, she stammered.

“We are not letting you go alone”, said Bonnie, scowling up at him.

“Really, Ash, it would be way too dangerous”, added Clemont.

“We are so close already”, argued Lana, when Ash turned towards her for support. “Besides, we might not find the palace without your and Rowlet’s help.”

Ash looked at Kiawe, but he just shrugged.

“Fine”, grumbled Ash, deferring for now. “But let’s go already, we are missing time.”

No one objected that, and they picked up their bags and started back towards the path in silence, the argument weighing heavily between them.

 

* * *

 

Lysandre had wrapped a blindfold around Greninja’s eyes and locked its hands behind its body, but luckily it had an excellent sense of direction.

As they walked, it counted the turns they took and registered any distinct sounds and smells they came across into its memory. At some point, they went down few seconds with an elevator. One or two floors, maximum. Right before they arrived at their destination, they passed a room smelling strongly of human food. A kitchen, or a canteen.

“Sorry for the rough treatment”, said Lysandre, sounding anything but sorry, as he unwrapped the blindfold. Greninja blinked few times, trying to adjust to the bright lights after many days in its dim cell.

What it saw then, made it want to put the blindfold back on and puke. In that order.

They were standing in front of a window overlooking a testing lab.

The lab was full of greninja.

Most of them were in tiny cages, some unconscious and some weakly sitting up, but one of them was laying on an operating table in the middle of the room. A lab-coated man was standing over it, injecting something into its arm.

Rage overwhelmed Greninja. It stepped away from Lysandre, and with all its weakened strength, it crashed its body against the glass. It rattled but held. As Lysandre tried to grab it, Greninja slashed him with its tongue, slapping his hands away with brutal strength. It jumped against the glass second time and this time, it heard a crack. It saw the greninja in the room grow more alert, some getting a hopeful look in their eyes as they saw what was happening.

But that was as far as Greninja got. Pain spiked through its body and its knees gave out. Unbalanced from having its hands tied back, it fell all the way on its side. As quickly as it had started, the pain stopped, and Greninja turned to stare up at Lysandre, who was now looming over it.

Greninja had expected anger, but he looked… happy.

Lysandre crouched next to it. “You understand now, right?” he said with a pleasant smile. “You see how it could be with you, too?”

Greninja stayed silent, its throat constricting with pure fear.

“I just need few answers from you, and when that’s over, you and your friends there can go free.”

Lysandre smiled down at it like it was a newborn puppy, cute and completely at his mercy. “You are strong and well trained, and it would be a shame to ruin that. But I need to know why you and Ash can do what you do. That power… In the right hands, it would make one unstoppable. But why you seem to be the only one that has this special power, that I don’t understand.”

Greninja wanted to curl up and cry, but at the same time it realized that Lysandre was spilling his great plan, so it pulled itself together, and listened.

“Is it because of you, or because of Ash?” mused Lysandre, now talking more to himself than Greninja. “I was thinking it was you, that it was something every greninja could do with enough persuasion, but I’m starting to question that. Maybe Ash does have a rare evolution stone with him. I didn’t see one on him when I met him last time, but it just might be hidden.”

Greninja didn’t like this direction of thought, so it drew Lysandre’s attention back to it, whining and struggling weakly on the floor.

Lysandre chuckled, standing up. He stared Greninja straight in the eyes. “You must be shaken up. I will give you one more day in you room to recover and think about this, and next time I come for you, I’m expecting cooperation.”

Someone pulled Greninja up by its arm, a bag was thrown over its head, and then it was roughly pushed back towards its cell.


	10. Questions

They had a plan. It took a while, but eventually they did get Ash to agree to it.

They were just outside of Santalune City, the city only a small, gently sloping field down from the thickly forested area where they had set camp. The plan was this: Serena and Clemont would sneak into the city – not sneak! insisted Serena – they would _walk_ there like couple of ordinary kids, Serena would shop for clothes and other accessories that could be used as disguises, Clemont would look for any useful machine parts, and then they would walk back and continue the journey.

In theory, it sounded simple. Still, while the Alolan kids, Ash and Bonnie were setting up a place to cook lunch, Serena and Clemont argued over their plan for what seemed like the fourth time within as many hours.

“Just put on some jeans and a t-shirt, you must have some with you!” Serena huffed as Clemont crossed his arms and backed away.

“I’m telling you it’s not necessary”, he said, his nerves making him uncharacteristically confrontational. “It’s only a quick trip to the market and it’s not like I’m that famous anyway.”

Serena eyed him, sternly but not unkindly. “You are, though, Clemont. You are recognizable. Especially after what happened last year. People have been coming from all over Kalos to see the Prism Tower and challenge you, or Clembot, specifically!”

Clemont opened his mouth to disagree, but stopped, his defenses faltering. Serena was right – his gym had been significantly busier after he had announced last year that he was taking challengers again. But it wasn’t _him_ that was famous, it was the building, and everything that had happened around it, right? Had he even been shown on the newsfeeds covering the Crisis aftermath? Had there been interviews? He couldn’t remember.

Clemont glanced down at his trusty blue jumpsuit and then back up at Serena, who was looking at him expectantly.

“They are not looking for us”, he insisted then. “They don’t know we are helping Ash! And if they wanted to question me, they would have done it already. I haven’t been hiding.”

Serena crossed her arms. “They might be looking for you now, though. And even if not, you might draw attention in the city. And if Lysandre’s men are in there, the last thing we want to do is to get noticed.”

Clemont felt cornered, but he took a breath and squared his shoulders. “I have so much useful stuff in these pockets. We can’t know what we might need during the trip! If I don’t have all the things with me…”

“Huh, I thought you just said it’s only a quick trip to the market”, Serena countered defiantly. “Why would we need anything special with us?”

“Yeah, what even could go wrong, right?” came Bonnie’s helpful input. She grinned up at them, having sneaked close while they were too busy arguing to notice. She laughed at the identical glares they gave her, but got more serious then, looking at Clemont. “What’s the problem, big bro?”

Clemont felt his body go tight with tension. He couldn’t have really explained it, even if he would have wanted to. And he really didn’t. The truth was, the jumpsuit was like an armor to him. He had had it since he had become a teenager, and since then he had only worn different clothes at home. At home, where he felt… safe, he guessed. When it came down to it, Clemont knew he was a decent pokemon trainer, but using pokemon to fight wasn’t always an option. And that was it. He wasn’t the most physical guy, nothing even close to how Ash and Kiawe were, but he could construct a weapon in under a minute from the pieces of machinery he had stored in the pockets of his suit.

Without it, he felt defenseless. Weak.

And there was no way he was explaining that, out loud, to anyone.

Clemont ground his teeth together for a moment, before looking away from the girls. “There’s no problem”, he said to the berry bushes. At least they wouldn’t judge. “It’s fine. I will change into other clothes. But I’m taking my backpack with me.”

He glanced at Serena, who was giving him a curious look. “Yeah, of course”, she answered, and shared a look with Bonnie.

Clemont was too wound up to stay and talk about it any longer, so he picked up his pack and walked away. He passed Ash on his way, who was absently brushing his lycanroc’s fur, looking almost as frustrated as Clemont felt. For a brief moment, Clemont’s own anxiety was overwhelmed by the memory of Ash casually saying, ‘ _maybe I should just go alone_ ’, like it was the obvious choice over a quick detour to nearest thrift shop.

Yeah, he had seen Ash acting reckless, way more often than he could count, but this time it had been different. Usually he jumped into things in the heat of a battle or other situations where there was no time to really think. But this time, it had been calculated. Ash had had plenty of time to think about it, had heard their opinions and ideas, and still suggested that he would do it alone. It made Clemont’s skin crawl with worry.

Shaking these thoughts from his head for now, Clemont ducked behind one of the massive trees and started unzipping his jumpsuit. After almost a year on the road with them, he didn’t mind dressing in front of Ash or even Serena, but he was acutely aware that there were more of them now. And even though Lana and Kiawe had seemed busy with the lunch preparations, Clemont would have felt weird undressing just there.

So, hiding away and feeling strangely small and awkward, Clemont changed into a pair of barely-worn jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt he would sometimes wear during colder nights. He folded the jumpsuit carefully, though there was no way it would fit into the backpack. Taking a final deep breath, Clemont walked back to the campsite, trying his best to look casual.

“You look different”, commented Lana almost immediately. She set down the plates she had been holding, rounded the camp fire and advanced on him. On her way, she grabbed Ash’s cap from his head and took it with her. Ash barely reacted, his eyes far away, and before Clemont could either, Lana had placed it firmly on his head.

Clemont took a half step back, exclaiming in surprise. “Wha-?”

Lana crossed her arms, examining him carefully. “Yup, _now_ you are unrecognizable.”

Kiawe was chuckling at him from where he was chopping vegetables, and Bonnie and Serena walked closer too, smiling widely. “Wow, big bro, you actually look kinda cool”, Bonnie teased.

“It suits you”, Serena agreed with good-natured amusement in her voice. “But seriously, Clemont, Lana is right. You look nothing like how people are used to seeing you. Even if we walked past a fan or an old challenger of yours, there’s no way they would realize it’s you.”

Clemont shrugged, still feeling slightly uncomfortable. “I guess that’s good”, he allowed. “Anyway, I’m ready to go. Let’s get this done so we can get on our way.”

He glanced at Ash, who still hadn’t reacted to the situation. Ash was staring at the ground, his hands buried in Litten’s fur, completely motionless. Clemont frowned, an odd uneasiness creeping at the edges of his mind.

“Yeah, let’s go”, Serena was saying, returning him to the present. She grabbed his arm, pulling him along. “We will be back in an hour”, she called over her shoulder. “Leave some food for us!”

“Wouldn’t count on it!” Lana called back, and then they were off, wading through the thick forest, on their way to Santalune City.

 

* * *

 

It was barely midday, but Lysandre couldn’t wait any longer.

He pushed away the blueprints he had been studying, called in his subordinates and marched over to the prison wing. He peeked through the opening and saw the greninja sitting down, staring at the floor like it wasn’t aware they were standing right there behind the door. It was mildly suspicious, so Lysandre wrapped a hand around the remote control in his pocket before unlocking the door.

The pokemon raised its head then, looking up at Lysandre with tired eyes. It probably hadn’t slept that well, not after so many days in captivity and after what it had witnessed the previous day. Lysandre couldn’t make himself feel any sympathy though, staring down at the distressed pokemon. It most likely had been pampered and spoiled in the kids care. It was about time it got a real taste of humans’ power.

“Well then”, he began, crossing his arms and smiling down at the greninja. “Are you ready to cooperate?”

The pokemon nodded, letting out a vaguely affirmative sound. It was a shame his best pokemon interpreter had been arrested during the Crisis, Lysandre thought. Well, he would just have to make do with limited ways of communication.

“I’m glad”, he said. He turned to face his subordinate. “Celosia, wrap it up again. It won’t try anything today, but I don’t want it to see anything it doesn’t need to see.”

“Yes, boss.”

While Celosia went to blindfold the greninja, Lysandre wandered out of the room and down the hallway. He hadn’t felt this excited, this close to a massive discovery, since the moment he had witnessed Ash and his greninja breaking their binds with pure energy surging through them. It had been magnificent. And finally, _finally_ , Lysandre was about to find out what was behind that power.

They moved the greninja to a plain meeting room, containing only a table and two chairs on the opposite sides of it. Lysandre sat down, and Celosia guided the pokemon to the other chair and unwrapped the blindfold. It blinked for a moment before focusing on Lysandre. For the briefest moment Lysandre could see sharp intelligence in its eyes before its gaze clouded over and it lowered its head.

Lysandre wasn’t a fool – he knew the pokemon was playing up its exhaustion and submission, but nevertheless, he was sure he always had the upper hand to any pokemon, intelligent or not. And greninja were, according to the excessive research he had done on the topic, generally quite clever and cunning pokemon.

“So”, he began. “I know you understand me, but sadly, I don’t understand you, so there is no point trying to talk this out.” He slapped a green sticker on the table, on the left side of the greninja. “This means yes, true and agree.” He placed a red sticker on its right side. “This means no, false and disagree.”

He looked up at the pokemon. “Do you understand?”

It eyed him for a moment before moving its hand to touch the green sticker.

“Great”, smiled Lysandre. “If you are not sure, or the answer is more complicated than yes or no, use the space in the middle. If you refuse to answer, I will kill one of the greninja I have in my lab. Understand?”

The pokemon blinked and leaned back on its chair. One of its frog-like hands balled up into a fist and its shoulders tensed. Lysandre’s smile widened. After few seconds of clearly murderous thoughts, the greninja edged its hand to the green sticker.

“Excellent. Let’s begin, then.” He narrowed his eyes, staring down at his prisoner. “Does your trainer have an evolution stone?”

The pokemon was tense, like a wire stretched to its limits and about to snap, but it reached to touch the red sticker.

 _Interesting._ “What about any other energy stone or artifact?”

Red sticker again.

“Where did he learn to do it?” The greninja looked at him, something akin to a frown on its face. Lysandre corrected himself: “Did someone teach it to him?”

_No._

Lysandre huffed, intrigued. “Do you know other greninja who can do the same?”

Red and then, uncertainly, to the middle.

Lysandre was reminded of the research material he had stolen from Sycamore’s lab. “Oh, fine, I also read the ancient manuscript about this phenomenon, but frankly, I think it’s bullshit. Nothing that powerful happens purely because of trust or friendship.” He considered the pokemon, who silently stared back. Lysandre rubbed at his chin. “It must then be an extremely rare ability some of you have. But you would think, in that case, we still would have seen it happening more. Does Ash have any special training?”

The hand stayed in the middle.

“Do you think he has?”

The greninja hesitated for a moment before brushing the red sticker.

Lysandre leaned back on his chair, thoughtful. This interview was turning out surprising and frankly, quite fascinating. He flashed a smile at the frowning pokemon. “You are doing well. You shall be rewarded for you cooperation. But I still have a few more questions.”

The greninja nodded, so Lysandre continued: “Professor Sycamore wrote in his notes that when using this special form in battle, the trainer feels the same pain as the greninja does. Is it true?”

The greninja went tense again, its fisted hand drawing closer to its body. It blinked slowly, threateningly.

Lysandre smiled, leaning on his elbows. “Please, do answer. You don’t want anyone to get hurt, do you?”

Tardily, it touched the green sticker.

Lysandre pursed his lips, quite confused about the confirmation. “That is unusual. Moves or abilities shouldn’t affect the trainer. But this does seem to be something really special, after all.” Lysandre paused, thinking. “So, you get stronger, your appearance changes and I assume at least some of the power comes straight from the trainer. Does Ash gain anything special from the bond?”

The greninja placed its hand in the middle.

“You don’t know? He hasn’t told you?”

 _No_.

“He hasn’t said anything about it? No extra strength, quicker reflexes, visual changes?”

 _No_.

“How about the pain? Does it affect him as much as it does you? He didn’t faint during the finals when you did, but can it happen?”

_No._

“Hm, interesting”, Lysandre mused, considering it sharply. The greninja shivered then, eyes drooping. It must be exhausted. Lysandre crossed his arms. He, too, was about ready to move on to the physical tests. “Alright, this is enough for now. I shall take you to the lab now. If this indeed is an ability you have, or something similar, there should be a way to trigger it with an external power source.”

He stood up, his chair scraping the floor noisily. He smiled down at the shuddering pokemon.

“Let’s test that theory.”

 

* * *

 

Serena almost lost Clemont a few times in the crowd of the marketplace.

Every time she turned around and Clemont wasn’t there, she started looking for the blue jumpsuit, and every time, Clemont managed to surprise her by appearing out of nowhere.

“Come on, Serena, I hope you are done by now”, came a voice right next to her ear and she jumped, letting out an embarrassing squeak.

“Clemont! Don’t sneak up on me like that!” she scolded red-faced, turning to face him.

Clemont’s eyes widened under Ash’s cap. “Huh? I have been standing here for few minutes already.”

“Whatever”, huffed Serena. She raised her shopping bags. “Yeah, I’m about done. Did you get everything you wanted?”

“Pretty much, yeah”, he nodded, a rattling sound coming from his backpack as he bounced it slightly. “We should probably head back.”

They elbowed their way out of the market and started walking back towards the camp.

It was silent for a while, until Serena couldn’t help but ask: “What do you think about Kiawe and Lana?”

Clemont glanced at her but didn’t seem surprised. He had thought about it, too.

“They seem really nice”, he began. “Not very experienced with pokemon, though.”

“I was thinking the same”, admitted Serena. “I mean, they are super cool, like you should hear about how much Lana has explored the sea, how many water pokemon she has seen. She’s amazing. But, still, she only has one starter pokemon. It’s…”

“Yeah”, Clemont said, waving a hand. “And Kiawe has these big, strong looking pokemon, and he does seem like a good and motivated trainer, but I don’t think he has that much experience. Like, real battle experience.”

“Like we have”, Serena said quietly.

Clemont nodded, frowning at the ground. “They won’t be any match to Lysandre and his men.”

There was shouting in the distance, and Serena and Clemont raised their heads, staring into the woods. It came from the camp.

They ran the rest of the way and arrived at the campsite out of breath and their hearts in their throats.

First, they noticed the crowd of anxious pokemon roaming around, and then, what was in the center of the commotion.

Ash was on the ground, his head and shoulders on Lana’s lap, his face pale and constricted with pain.

“What’s going on?” yelped Clemont, rushing to kneel next to Kiawe and Bonnie. “What happened?”

Bonnie took hold of his arm, her grip almost crushing. “We don’t know, big bro”, she answered, voice wavering. “We were just about to eat, but he wasn’t reacting to our voice. Lana went to check up on him, but he just faceplanted on the ground. Well, Lana did catch him just before.”

Lana snapped her fingers in front of Ash’s face. There was no reaction. “It’s like he’s not present”, she mused. She poked him on the forehead.

“It’s kind of like before”, said Kiawe. “Like what happened in Alola.”

Serena frowned. “What, exactly, did happen in Alola?”

They all startled then. Ash was blinking up at the sky, his mouth opening into a confused O.

Before they had time to react, he was pushing himself up and away from the group. He stood up, stumbled, and stayed on his knees, his back to them. His whole body was so tense that it was trembling.

“Ash?” Serena asked with a weak voice. “Are you… okay?”

After a minute, Ash stood up, steadily this time, and turned to face them. He grinned wide, eyes sharp and brilliant.

“Yeah, I’m great. Greninja just evolved.”


	11. Answers

He had been thinking about Greninja the whole day.

When Rowlet came to a stop at a crossroad and slumped on the ground, sad and defeated, uncertain of the right direction, Ash felt an anxious twist in his stomach. He knew they had to be close. They had to be close, but they were on their own, in the middle of an unfamiliar forest, looking for a hidden place. He couldn’t help but worry that when they finally found it, they would be too late.

As Serena and Clemont prepared to visit Santalune city, Ash tried to focus on other things. He took care of his pokemon, brushed them, petted them, checked for injuries. Occasionally, when he remembered to raise his head and look around, he saw Pikachu staring at him. It was worried about him, that much was clear, but Ash had no way to comfort it. There was nothing wrong with him – he just couldn’t stop thinking about Greninja.

And when it happened, the evolution, it was intense.

The rush Ash got from it felt different, amplified. The power surged through him, making his arms cramp and his fingers flex tightly around tufts of Lycanroc’s fur. His heartbeat sped up and the world around him focused into something much clearer, sharper. He saw the campsite like it was the first time – the big trees, the colorful bushes and flowers, the blue sky peeking through the treetops. He turned his head and saw his friends huddled around a campfire, laughing and stirring a pot of something that smelled incredible. He saw Pikachu, Lycanroc, Rowlet and Litten staring up at him with varying expressions of concern.

And then, he sensed it. Greninja.

 

* * *

 

It felt… amazing.

Greninja rose from where it had been kneeling, staring Lysandre straight in the eye. The man took a step back, bewilderment clear on his face.

“It worked”, he whispered. He glanced at his assistant, who was holding the strange device that had just shot a powerful light into Greninja. The young man was standing there with white-knuckled hands, shock still, staring. Slowly, Lysandre’s features stretched into a triumphant grin. “It worked!”

Greninja barely heard him. The feeling of _Ash_ was so much, so intense – the power that now flowed in its veins made it felt like it had grown double its size.

 _I missed you_ , it sent, more of an emotion than words, and Ash responded in kind. Barely seconds after that, Greninja’s mind flooded with overwhelming worry that was not its own, with _‘are you okay, where are you, what happened’_ , and million other thoughts and questions. Greninja squeezed its eyes shut.

 _STOP_ , it forced through the noise, and Ash’s mind went deathly quiet. Greninja couldn’t afford to reconsider this, to worry about the downsides of the connection they had and what harm it could possibly cause, so it continued, with equal force: _Look._

The presence of Ash settled on the back of its consciousness and it could finally focus on what was happening around it.

Lysandre was leaning towards the cage Greninja had been locked into, studying it closely. “So that is all it took”, he murmured, rubbing at his chin. “Just the standard energy pulse. No evolution jewel needed. No battle situation or aggression. Unless…”

Greninja stood up straighter, feeling the energy of the shuriken pulsing on its back. Its vision felt sharper, more focused, like the rest of the world was suddenly moving slower. Its body was demanding action, every fiber of its being ready to attack.

But Lysandre was holding the remote control in his hand, his thumb lightly resting on the button.

The man had fallen quiet, unreadable expression on his scarred face. Then, with a final look at Greninja, he turned around and commanded his closest underling: “Celosia, call in the guards and organize a search of the perimeter. And do it quietly. The kid might be close by.”

“Yes, boss”, the woman, Celosia, responded crisply before jogging off.

Lysandre turned to the other goons standing nearby. “You two, stand back but stay here for now. We need to move the greninja back to its cell soon.”

The men obeyed and took positions, and Lysandre spun on his heel and marched back to Greninja’s cage. There was a gleam in his eyes and a half smirk stretching his lips. He clapped his hands together.

“Look at you”, he chuckled, a real sense of marvel in his voice, “aren’t you magnificent!”

Greninja stayed silent, unmoving. If it wanted to escape, it couldn’t allow itself to be confined back to the cell. But it couldn’t fight Lysandre, not there, not when he had so big of an advantage. It would have to wait for the right moment.

While Greninja scanned the room as inconspicuously as it could, Lysandre picked up a laptop and started typing on it with one hand, glancing back and forth at Greninja.

“The changes are small, easy to miss if you don’t know the species well”, he murmured to himself. “The red head piece is probably the most noticeable part. Though on its back, the shuriken…”

From the edges of its mind, Greninja felt Ash demanding attention. _Where are you?_ he was thinking. _Just hold on, Greninja,_ _I’m coming._

Greninja didn’t know its exact location on a map, but closed its eyes briefly, focusing on the route it had taken while looking for Lysandre. It had met a nice farmer just outside of Santalune city, from where it had dipped into a nearby river and swam for about half a day upstream until it had found the hiding spot looking over this compound. It tried to visualize the journey as vividly as it could, about how the trees around it had grown thicker and taller the longer it swam, how the compound had looked from above, adding in the basic layout of the fences and gates as accurately it could remember.

Lysandre’s sharp voice interrupted its focus. “Hey, what are you doing? Look at me.”

Annoyed, hoping it had been clear enough for Ash to understand, Greninja did. It opened its eyes and glared up at the man, steady and unafraid.

It would all be over soon.

Ash was coming.

 

* * *

 

The pull back into his body made him light-headed, and for a second, he didn’t know where he was.

Ash scrambled up and instantly staggered. He found himself kneeling, his body shaking with excess, unfamiliar energy. He took a few breaths, forcing himself to relax. He leaned down and pressed his palms against the solid earth. Slowly, the overwhelming feeling transformed into something much steadier, warm and powerful, like a second heart inside his chest. He smiled. It felt good. Right.

“Ash?” he heard Serena ask behind him. “Are you… okay?”

“Pikapi?”

When Ash stood up and turned around, he saw all his friends huddled down on the ground, staring up at him in varying states of shock. Pikachu was at his feet, and the look in its eyes was not exactly concerned but beyond that. Heavy. It knew something had changed.

“Yeah, I’m great”, he said, grinning. He felt amazing, actually. “Greninja just evolved.”

The silence for the next few seconds was deafening.

“But…” stuttered Clemont. Ash looked at him properly then and blinked. The blonde was, for a reason Ash couldn’t even begin to comprehend, wearing his cap on his head. “Ash, how is that even possible? We must still be quite far away from it!”

“Wow, does this mean it escaped from Lysandre’s place?” asked an excited Bonnie.

“Did you see it again?” asked Lana with narrowed eyes.

“Ash, what happened to you?” demanded Serena. “Why were you unconscious?”

“Why did it happen now?” questioned Kiawe. “What changed?”

“Pikapi pika pikachu pika!”

“Um”, said Ash. He rubbed at his neck, wondering how he was explaining _this_. He was still slightly trembling with excess energy and he kinda, really wanted to go for a run.

Finally, he settled with: “Man, I don’t really know what happened, guys! I think Lysandre somehow did it.”

This started another round of shouts and questions from his friends and it took a minute for them to realize they would also need to leave time for Ash to answer. One by one they quieted down, and Clemont cleared his throat.

“Right, um… Just start from the beginning, huh?” he began. “What exactly is this connection between you and Greninja?”

“Right”, said Ash. He hesitated for a few more seconds before nodding with determination. “I guess I haven’t really explained it to you… You see, me and Greninja sometimes do this thing where I can see what it sees. Before all this stuff happened, it used to be just these quick flashes I saw because Greninja had to show me something important… Uh, like you guys remember when we thought Greninja got run over by that truck, but it was actually under it!” He pointed at Serena and Bonnie, who nodded silently. “But today, and earlier in Alola, it was kinda different. I was there with Greninja for a long time, and I guess I was unconscious here during it.”

“And you saw Lysandre there with Greninja?” asked Serene quietly.

“Yeah. The first time was just after Greninja got caught, but this time it was in a different room and it had just evolved back into Ash-Greninja. Lysandre was there and his assistant had this weird machine in his hands – I think Lysandre called it something like ’the energy pulse’? And he was talking about it, like he thought it was the thing that caused Greninja to evolve.”

Clemont looked thoughtful. “So, he shot some sort of an energy pulse at Greninja and it gained the power to evolve? I guess it could be true, though there must be something else going on too. Did you do or experience anything different today, before it happened, Ash?”

Ash paused, puzzled. “Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean, the Ash-Greninja form is something you two always do _together_. According to my data, you need to be in perfect sync for it to work. But we don’t even know where Greninja is! How could it just happen like that?”

Clemont threw his hands in the air, exasperated. Everyone else was also staring at Ash expectantly, waiting for an answer.

Ash grinned nervously. “Uh, I dunno! I guess I was thinking about Greninja more than usual. And it must have been thinking about me. And the power machine must have helped too, because usually when we evolve it’s like _wham!_ , you know?” Ash squeezed his hands into fists and held them in front of him, like preparing for a fist fight. “But this time it was more like _bam!_ , like really strong? I thought I was gonna explode!”

He stretched his arms wide, imitating an explosion. He looked at his friends. Everyone was still staring. Bonnie tilted her head to the side and Serena’s mouth was slightly open. Kiawe scratched at his hair.

One second. Two. “Wow, you’re weird”, said Lana.

“You believe it happened because you were _thinking_ about Greninja?” repeated Clemont, incredulously.

“I didn’t know that was possible”, said Kiawe with a furrowed brow. “Did you?”

Ash shrugged, smiling. “I mean, we never tried it before.”

Clemont slowly shook his head. “That is true, I guess”, he weakly agreed.

He still seemed a bit shaken. And he was still wearing Ash’s cap.

Ash let out a laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. “Um, could I have my hat back, Clemont?”

 “Oh! Sorry, of course!” the blonde squeaked. His hand flew up to touch the hat instinctively.

The tension broke a bit, and everyone chuckled, relaxing. Clemont handed the hat to Ash and smiled. “Thanks for the loan.”

Kiawe stepped away and crouched by the pot of food that was still steaming over the now extinguished firepit. “Hey guys, let’s eat our lunch!” he called, and the group agreed enthusiastically.

 

When everyone was full and satisfied, the others packed up their belongings while Serena went through her shoppings. She modified a toddlers Chespin-costume to fit Pikachu and Ash, with some hesitation, agreed to wear a blonde wig and a brown, oversized jacket. Chespin, laying on the grass with a full stomach and a wicked grin, found the costumes very amusing. Bunnelby had to step in before Pikachu got too riled up by the teasing and shocked them all. When Serena was done, Ash told the group about the route Greninja had shown him.

“It’s pretty close”, he explained. He waived his hand around vaguely. “It was, um… It was maybe… east from here?”

And that was when Clemont pulled out his maps and together, they figured out the most likely direction they should head to.

 

Few hours later, they were back on the path. Ash was on the lead, fueled by new determination and anxious energy. Pikachu was curled up in his arms, as it had trouble running in the baggy costume.

“Man, I dunno about these clothes”, mumbled Ash when the wig blew on his face and made him sneeze for the third time.

Pikachu peeked its head up, eyes desperate. “Piika…”

“You too, huh?” chuckled Ash. “I’ll figure something out, don’t worry.”

There was the sound of running steps and Serena appeared beside him. She grinned when she saw them, dressed ridiculously, and Ash rolled his eyes. She quickly schooled her face back to a more neutral expression.

“Hey”, she breathed, and edge of laughter still in her voice.

“Hey”, answered Ash, smiling despite himself.

“So, how are you doing? After- after all that?”

Ash kept his eyes on the path ahead. “I’m fine”, he said.

“Really?” She didn’t sound convinced.

Ash glanced at her quickly. “Yeah.”

“You are not thinking about doing anything reckless, are you?”

Ash startled by the direct question and almost dropped Pikachu. “What? No!”

Even to his own ears, it sounded like a lie. He could see that Serena was thinking the same.

“Good”, she said giving him a pointed look. After a beat, she asked: “How about Greninja? Is it doing okay?”

Ash hummed, thoughtful. “It was surprised. About evolving. I think it was also feeling kinda tired and irritated. But it wasn’t afraid of Lysandre. It knows it’s stronger than him, and that me and it can beat Lysandre no problem. It was so happy to hear from me. It really missed me…” He trailed off with a sigh.

Serena touched his arm gently. “And you really miss it.”

“Yeah.”

They walked in a pensive silence for a while, until Serena sprinted few steps ahead of him and smiled, all teeth and bright eyes.

“Ash, we are so close now!” she declared encouragingly. “We know where we need to go, and you are connected with Greninja again. You will instantly know if something is wrong with it. It won’t be long before we see it again! And when you two are back together again, I know nothing, especially Lysandre, will stop you.”

Ash swallowed, glancing down at Pikachu and then back up at Serena. The burning, good energy from the evolution had faded a while ago and Ash’s mood had been slowly clouding over by anxiety all over again. But Serena’s words made something in him stir and wake up. He felt his heart pick up a beat and his fingers tingling with anticipation. He ground his teeth together, looking ahead. There was no way he would get defeated by Lysandre, not before they had even faced each other in person.

His temper flared and he grinned. “Man, you are so right! We really are close now. It’s gonna be so good to see Greninja again. I just gotta focus on that!” Back in higher spirits, he pumped his fist, jostling Pikachu in the process. “Thanks, Serena!”

The girl smiled, pleased. “You’re welcome, Ash.”

Ash hummed, not feeling happy, exactly, but more focused and determined. He gave Serena a look.

“So… how ‘bout you?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“How are you doing?”

Serena blinked. “Me? Oh, um…” Her smiled faded and she turned her head away, frowning at the ground. “Good, I guess? Or… I don’t know! I haven’t really thought about it, you know? I have just been worrying about Greninja and you.”

Ash nodded silently, even though Serena wasn’t looking at him. “I’m sorry”, he said, and that time she did look, her head whipping around, eyes wide.

“Sorry? About what?”

“You shouldn’t even be here”, said Ash apologetically. “I was supposed to come alone, you know? But Lana and Kiawe wouldn’t let me and then Alain called you three.”

“Well, I’m glad he did”, Serena huffed. She gave him a sideways look. “I’m really happy you aren’t here alone, Ash. Sure, it is dangerous and scary, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. You must know me well enough to know that.”

“Yeah.”

“Then, you know there’s no reason to apologize, right?”

Ash nodded. “Right.”

Serena smiled, her expression getting warmer. She looked at him closely. “Can I ask you something?”

“Uh, sure?” he said, blinking slowly.

“What did Lysandre say to you last time you met? I know you and Alain saw him in the Prism Tower, just before he went all crazy with the Giant Rock. I was just wondering, since you haven’t told us that much. Alain seemed kind of upset about the whole thing.”

Dread, dark and heavy, curled deep in his stomach. Ash took a breath and felt it catch in his throat.

“He- um… Well, lots of stuff happened.” He hesitated. The whole Crisis was mostly just a big blur for him. He bit the inside of his cheek, thinking. “He was really interested in what me and Greninja could do. I don’t think he knew what it was, really, but he thought it had lots of power. And he wanted the power to… to take over the world?” He shrugged helplessly, and Serena made a similar gesture. Lysandre’s ramblings had always been slightly on the side of insane.

“Then he tried to… um, I guess he tried to take control of me and Greninja? He had this weird device – I don’t really remember what happened then. I got really confused, and it kinda hurt a lot, and I just recall hearing Pikachu screaming.” He glanced down at his best friend, who was looking back, steady and attentive. Serena hand gone silent and pale, so he continued: “That’s when I got pretty pissed off. I told him I would never help him with any of his plans. Greninja was feeling the same thing, so our hearts became one, it evolved and that helped us to get free of the restraints. That was so awesome!”

He smiled at the memory. That had been one of the most powerful bond evolutions he had experienced with Greninja. He had been aching and exhausted for days after, but nonetheless, it had been pretty cool.

It took him a moment to notice he was walking by himself. Puzzled, he turned on his heels and saw Serena standing on the spot, staring at him. The rest of the group caught up with her, looking between them with perplexed expressions.

“Serena?” asked Ash cautiously.

Serena gaped at him. “What did you say?”

“About what?”

“Restraints? Ash-“

Ash fell into an instinctive defensive pose. “Yeah?”

“Hey, what’s going on?” demanded Clemont.

“You were captured by Lysandre?” Serena snapped, her voice thin. She brushed her hair away from her face, and her hand was shaking. “He held you prisoner and hurt you?”

Ash shrugged haplessly. “Well…”

“That’s why Alain was so worried! You didn’t just have a pokemon fight with him! He already once had you in his hands!”

Ash stood shock still, eyes wide.

“Is it true?” asked Clemont quietly.

Bonnie clambered closer, grabbing her brother’s arm. She stared up at Ash. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“There was no time to explain when all of it was happening”, Ash weakly said. He didn’t like how defensive he sounded. “And when we won, I guess I kinda just wanted to forget about it. I thought I could.” He frowned at the ground, feeling oddly embarrassed. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

Serena exhaled, and the fight was gone from her eyes. “It’s all right, Ash. Gods, it’s not your fault. I just…”

“I’m sorry too, Ash”, said Clemont and Ash blinked at him. “I was so broken up about losing Clembot that I didn’t notice you had gone through something too. I should have been more attentive.”

Ash was completely abashed. “Huh? No way, Clemont! Clembot was your friend!”

“You are our friend too”, said Bonnie, giving him a pointed look.

“Yeah, but-“

“Pikapi!”

Ash looked down at Pikachu. “What is it buddy?”

“Pi pika pikachu!”

Ash looked up. There was a fletchinder circling in the air, clearly looking for something.

Lana, following his gaze, said: “We should keep going.”

“Yeah, the forest is getting thicker, we should soon be pretty well covered by the trees”, noted Clemont.

“And we shoudn't just watch the air. There will be more guards around in the forest too, the closer we get”, Kiawe pointed out. “Let’s keep our eyes and ears open.”

Everyone agreed, and in anxious silence, they carried on.


	12. Distress

"Do you think Lysandre still has that mind control device?"

Clemont flinched. He turned to look at Serena. Her face was tense, eyes wider than usual.

"Clemont, what if he uses it on Greninja?" she continued, voice barely louder than a whisper.

Clemont glanced around. Ahead of them, rest of their group was walking with Ash, quietly talking, their tone light. Making idle conversation to forget the awful situation they really were in.

"I don't know, Serena", he ground out, turning back to her. "I think the police got most of Team Flare's gear when the Crisis ended. At least everything that was in the Prism Tower and in their main base."

He swallowed. "But as I'm sure you remember, we did see the scientist guy, Xerosic, way later and he still had some of his tech. Including a mega evolution ray that could be used to control people and pokemon. So… maybe they still have some of it. And they have had time to build new things, too."

"But Xerosic was arrested", said Serena blankly.

"I know, but not all of the scientists were. And I'm sure they have gotten new people involved too. There are always those who get exited by the thought of following a strong leader into a new and better world. Those who think they deserve it. Who think they are better than other people."

They fell quiet.

"I hate this", Serena hissed then. "I hate Lysandre. I hate that this is happening again. Didn't we do enough already? Why is it always us? Why is it Ash?"

Clemont stayed silent. He didn't have any answers.

"I thought I was prepared, but I'm not", she went on. She was staring at the forest floor, eyes shining with unshed tears. "I thought we were so amazing last time, so this would be no big deal. But what did I even _do_ last time? None of us expect Ash even met Lysandre at all! In the end, I barely did anything to help."

"Don't sell yourself short!" objected Clemont. He stared at his friend in bewilderment. "You fought multiple Team Flare members and helped to save Chespie! And during the final battle, you gave your all to protect Bonnie and Mairin. For that, I will forever be thankful to you."

He waited until Serena looked back at him. "Serena, you are stronger than you think", he told her.

Serena blinked rapidly, wiping at her eyes. "Thanks, Clemont", she whispered. She looked up, and Clemont followed her gaze. Ash was laughing out loud, the ridiculous wig falling half of as he threw his head back with it. Now that they were in the deep forest, Pikachu was on the ground and mostly out of its costume, only the head piece staying on, walking behind him. It was watching Ash too, head tilted slightly to the side, smiling gently.

Clemont grinned. Next to him, Serena choked out a laugh, and for a moment frozen in time, they experienced the surreal moment together.

And then Ash doubled over, crying out in pain.

 

* * *

 

"Can you de-evolve back?" asked Lysandre.

Greninja could, but it wasn't going to. It glared at the man and shook its head.

"Can you communicate with Ash in any way?"

Greninja shook its head again. Lysandre leaned back against a table, rubbing his chin.

Moving physically as little as possible, Greninja reached it focus away from itself and found Ash. It had been at least half an hour since the evolution, but Ash and his group were still in the same spot, not doing anything special. Greninja could sense vague thoughts about dinner and mixed with that, about the directions Greninja had shown him earlier. It didn't understand why they were still waiting around, but they probably had a good reason for it. Not wanting to disturb Ash further, Greninja pulled back and focused on Lysandre.

"How much stronger are you in this form?" he was asking, considering it with narrowed eyes. "Well, you can't really answer that. Maybe I should test it in practice. Do a comparison. Not like I'm short on greninja."

He chuckled at his own morbid joke. Greninja didn't give him the pleasure of a reaction.

Lysandre smiled unpleasantly. "Oh, don't be like that. I was-"

The lab door banged open and one of the goons burst in.

"Boss!" he exclaimed, out of breath. "We searched everywhere, but we didn't find him. We sent out all the birds too, but they haven't returned yet with any news."

Lysandre's relaxed façade cracked, and he snarled at the man: "Look again. He must be close by now. I want half of you in the forests, in full gear. Circle the area until you find him, or any sign that he has been there. Campsites, fresh footprints, pieces of clothing. And when you find something, I want to hear about it immediately."

The man nodded stiffly. Drops of sweat were running down his face. "Okay, boss."

"And the rest of you, prepare the equipment down here. Get everything ready. If something is broken, fix it. Understood?"

"Understood, boss."

"Good. Tell Mable to meet me at Lab 1. Now."

The guy nodded and took off. When he was gone, Lysandre turned back to Greninja.

"Unfortunately, I have to leave you for now. Your trainer is quite a slippery one, isn't he? Avoiding my detection for this long. But don't worry, I will catch him."

He flashed his crooked smile at Greninja. It suppressed a shudder, masking its anxiety under a blank stare.

Lysandre turned to leave. On his way out, he said to the two goons standing at the doorway: "Watch that greninja. Do not take your eyes off it for a second."

He handed the remote controller to one of them. And then, he was gone.

 

* * *

 

Everyone was shouting.

Wrapping his arms around his midsection, he straightened his back again. He squinted at his friends. His vision sparkled with white bursts of light and his legs had gone numb. Someone was at his side, holding his upper arm firmly.

His head was about to explode.

"Ah…"

He wasn't certain of what he had wanted to say, but he was pretty sure it had something to do with Greninja. He blinked rapidly but the world stayed blurry. The pain was so intense, so overwhelming, that he was sure someone had stabbed him in the stomach.

But that didn't make any sense. He tried to focus. Lana's wide blue eyes were very close, straight in front of his. Had Lana stabbed him?

No, that wasn't it. Ash shook his head slowly but regretted the movement immediately. It made the world spin, and he felt woozy.

He heard Pikachu calling his name. Someone was pressing on to his shoulders, urging him to sit down. Ash fought against it.

"No, I gotta-"

Then, as suddenly as it has started, the pain was gone, and Ash's knees wobbled. The world came into sharp focus again and he whipped his head around. Kiawe was holding on to his arm, taking most of his weight as he staggered in place, trying to find his balance again.

Ash shook him off, stumbling away. He gasped for air.

"I'm fine", he said. His voice was hoarse.

They were all staring at him. Ash coughed. He wondered if he had screamed out loud. His fingers were still tingling with traces of pain and his heart was racing.

He looked at Pikachu. It nodded; eyes grave.

Clemont was wringing his hands. He took a step forward, uncertainly.

"Ash, what happened?"

"They are hurting Greninja", he answered, and the words echoed in his head. All his senses were shot, and he took a step back, disoriented.

That's when the pain hit him again. He almost bit on his tongue but managed to avoid it, grinding his teeth firmly together. He stumbled backwards until he hit a tree. He leaned against it and shut his eyes.

He's insides were on fire. Someone was drilling into his brain. He felt sick.

"Just hold on, Ash", someone was saying. "It'll be over soon. Just hold on."

 _I am holding on,_ he wanted to say. _I'm fine, it's not me, it's-_

Greninja.

 

Ash opened his eyes, and he was in a cage. White walls surrounded him.

Two men were standing on the other side of the bars, sneering down at him.

"Look at it struggling to take it", one of them was saying. "Not so strong and special now, are you?"

Ash felt the moment when Greninja became aware of him. Warmth spread through them and suddenly, the pain was only a minor nuisance. Greninja rose back to its full height, and the men took startled steps back. Blue flame surrounded Greninja, and it slashed at the cage door, the lock mechanism giving away easily.

Now the men were panicking. They scrambled back, the remote controller falling away from limp fingers. Greninja advanced on them and with quick moves of cut, they were down.

The pain was now completely gone, replaced by intense feeling of power. Greninja dragged their unconscious bodies to the cage and slammed the door shut, sealing them in. It pulled open the lab door and saw empty hallways ahead. A way out.

 _Take care,_ thought Ash. _I'm almost there._

Greninja nodded, and with that, Ash was back in the forest.

 

He looked around. He was still leaning against the tree, and this time no one was touching him. He blinked few times, taking in the terrified faces of his friends. When they saw he was back with them and not in pain anymore, they slowly relaxed.

Serena stepped forward. "Ash…!"

He smiled. He still felt a bit shaky, but much better already. He pushed away from the tree. "It's fine now. Greninja got away."

"Got away? What do you mean?"

"Well, from the cage it was in. It's loose in the compound now."

"Oh, cool!" cheered Bonnie. "Greninja is way smarter than any of those guys! I'm sure it will find a way out."

"Is it okay?" asked Clemont. "Are you okay?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah. Something happened, something new. I think it was the same device they used to hurt it before, but we didn't pass out this time. I was there with Greninja, and we just got stronger! It only lasted for a few seconds, but there was this awesome blue light and everything!"

"That sounds amazing. I wish I would've gotten some data off it", mused Clemont. "It could've really helped me with my bond-evolution research."

"There seems to be a lot we don't yet know about it", Kiawe wondered aloud.

Ash shook off his backpack and kneeled next to it. He opened the zip and started unpacking it, piling his sleeping bag, spare clothes and other unnecessary things on the ground. He took off the annoyingly oversized jacket too, adding it to the pile. The wig had already fallen off at some point.

He pressed his cap back on his head.

"What are you doing?" asked Lana.

Ash checked the now almost empty bag over and nodded to himself. He zipped it closed and picked it up again, throwing it over his shoulder.

"Ash?"

He looked at Pikachu, who scrambled up his leg and settled in the dip of his shoulders, a familiar weight that always grounded him.

"I need to go", he said to the group. "I'll be fine. I'll see you at the compound?"

"What - wait a minute!" Serena yelped. "You are leaving us?"

"I'm gonna run the rest of the way, and you gotta carry all our stuff", Ash explained. They were still balking at him. It didn't seem like they were getting his logic. "Greninja needs me now."

"I can run", declared Kiawe. He dropped his backpack.

"I can, too", Lana snapped.

"No", said Ash. He felt oddly serene then. Sure of himself. "Lysandre knows I'm coming. He knows that I'm really close. His men are everywhere in this forest. And they are only looking for me."

He rolled his shoulders, feeling the familiar rush of adrenaline. "So, let them find me. If they spot me, they'll leave the forest immediately and you can safely continue closer. If they don't spot me, then I'll do my best to help Greninja out when I get there."

"That's not… We should think this through!" sputtered Clemont. "Let's just sit down for a minute and-"

"I can't", said Ash. "I have to go."

He backed away, raising his hand. He gave one last wave at his friends, standing there frozen, staring.

Ash turned around, ducked under a tree branch and sprinted off.

 

* * *

 

Stairs. It needed to find the stairs.

Greninja peeked around yet another corner of the hallway, but all the corridors looked identical. Every door along the way had been locked, and it didn't want to draw attention by breaking one down. The second its escape was discovered, it would be out of time.

Greninja arrived at the elevator doors. On top of it, it showed the current floor number: -5. Greninja could hear the low hum of the machinery and the echoing clangs from the car of the elevator as it moved somewhere in the shaft.

In a brief moment of madness, it wondered if it could climb up the shaft.

 _No. Focus._ What would Ash do?

Greninja shook its head. That didn't help. Ash probably _would_ try to climb up the shaft.

Abandoning that trail of thought, Greninja kept going. Yet another empty corridor stretched ahead if it, but this time there was an opening in the middle of it. Greninja dashed there and with an overwhelming relief, saw a dimly lit stairwell with ways both up and down.

It started up, carefully stepping on each stair to make as little noise as possible. The slow pace was frustrating, but it knew the chances that it would get out of there were hanging by a thread, and the smallest mistake would collapse it all.

Greninja reached the next landing and stopped to listen. Someone else was also in the stairwell, way up from where it was, their hurried steps and voice echoing in the space. Greninja wasn't sure whether the person was going up or down, but it prepared itself all the same. It walked up one more flight and stopped again. The person was definitely coming closer, descending the stairs with a quick pace. Greninja retreated so it was mostly hidden from the above and waited.

"Damn it, I said I'm coming!" the person was snarling. The voice was familiar. Greninja identified it belonging to the scientist woman, Celosia. "It's a mess up there. Those new guys have no idea how to organize a search. I have to do everything myself. Idiots, the lot of them."

She rounded the corner in the stairway, and Greninja attacked.

It had to give it to her, she had perfect reflexes.

Greninja went in with a cut, slashing at her diagonally from left to right. She leaped away, dodging just enough to keep her balance, but the radio phone she had been talking into flew past Greninja's head in a nice arch and clattered down the stairs.

"Oh, fuck!"

Greninja didn't leave her time to recover. It continued with cut, and this time it hit. With a breathless scream, she slammed against the wall. Still, her hand was already at her belt and before Greninja had time to stop her, she released her drapion. The pokemon seemed confused at first, before it grasped the situation it was in and how its partner had been attacked.

Then it got angry. Celosia tried to mumble instructions, but the pokemon took initiative, releasing pin missile at Greninja. Greninja blocked it with cut and jumped to one side, preparing for aerial ace. It had to finish this quickly, before others were alerted and it would get swarmed with enemies.

Drapion tried to attack with sludge bomb, but Greninja was already moving. It dashed around the drapion until it got disoriented and slammed it down with a fully powered aerial ace. Then, to finish it off, it used water shuriken.

Greninja didn't stay to check if it was completely out. It sprinted up the stairs, still not seeing or hearing anyone else in the vicinity. It was breathless with exertion when it finally got to the top of the stairs, to a thick metal door that had 'Roof access' written on it.

It tried the handle on it, but it didn't open.

Greninja pushed and pulled at the door, frustration making it lose some of the level-headed control it usually always had. Growling, with a deep and animalistic sound, it slammed against the door. It stayed shut, with no sign it was even close to breaking down.

Now there were new sounds in the stairwell. Rushed steps and shouts emanated from the ground level, just one floor below where Greninja was standing. Greninja crouched down, heart in its throat. It had trapped itself at a dead end, with no way to escape if the men decided to come up the stairs.

"Celosia!"

"What did they say? Did she fall down?"

"She was on her way down to the labs", someone said, his voice authoritative. "Let's go!"

The sounds were getting quieter. Greninja let out a breath it hadn't noticed it had been holding. They were going down.

But now Greninja was out of time. Celosia would tell the others, and Lysandre would then be alerted to its escape. If it wasn't out of the building by then, there would be no way it would make it.

The doorways leading out would no doubt be well guarded, and the front lawn monitored carefully. Greninja sneaked down to the ground level and peeked out to the hallway. It was clear for now, so with the grace and quietness of a shadow, Greninja started towards the other end of it.

A window then, maybe?

Approaching sounds echoed from the adjoining hallway. Greninja picked a door at random, pushed on it and found out with relief it wasn't locked. It slipped in and clicked the door shut just in time. Greninja looked around. The room was small, eerily quiet with no lights on. It looked like a one-person office, with desk and a chair against one wall and a half empty bookshelf against the other. And a window, small and dirty, on the opposite wall from the door.

Greninja rushed to it and looked out. The window faced out the back of the compound, with a small area of outgrown lawn between the wall and the chain-link fence. And beyond that, the cliff wall rose just there, producing a deep shadow that fell over the area.

It was perfect.

Greninja forced the window open and dropped down between the wild bushes. Leaves and grass rustled as it waded through the long growth towards the fence.

Someone whispered: "Greninja?"

It stopped, blinking. It had been a long time since it had heard that voice.

Greninja turned, and just there, so close it could reach out and touch him if not for the fence between them, stood Ash.


	13. Desperation

Ash ran.

He found it surprisingly difficult. It had been a while since he had last run in a forest like this. Over the past few months, he had gotten used to the wide sunny beaches and sparser woods of Alola. Now, most of his concentration went into watching his feet and trying not to trip over the roots that hid under the thick undergrowth.

Besides that, there was the fact he evaded admitting even to himself – he was exhausted. It had been a long day. A very long day. He barely comprehended it was still the same day than when Clemont had woken them up in a hurry and they had nearly been caught by Lysandre’s goons. After that, it had been a rollercoaster of emotions with no time to really recover in between. They had walked for hours. He had argued with his friends, Greninja had evolved, he had – after avoiding it for so long – finally talked about Lysandre, and then, barely ten minutes ago from now, he had endured the pain inflicted on Greninja.

He didn’t mind the pain, but the episode had left an uncomfortable feeling of pressure around his waist. Like there was something wrapped around him, tightly, making it harder to breathe.

He came to a sudden halt.

“Pikapi?”

“It’s all right”, Ash said. His vision tunneled. He leaned his hands against his knees and gasped for breath. He felt his chest and stomach expand, and there was nothing restricting the movement. He wrapped one arm around his midsection, feeling the soft cloth of his t-shirt against his palm.

He still couldn’t catch his breath. Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, planted itself right under Ash’s face and looked up at him.

“Pi, pikaa.”

“I know, I know”, he mumbled. He took a deep breath, standing up again. The hyperventilation had made him feel slightly light-headed, but at least the oppressive sensation had somewhat subsided. He sat down on a tree stump, rubbing the heels of his palms against his eyes until he felt a little bit more present again. He looked up and saw Pikachu still standing there, just watching him.

“I’m so tired, Pikachu”, he whispered. There wasn’t another soul around, but he couldn’t make himself to say it any louder. Pikachu jumped on his lap and headbutted his chest. It sat down on his knee, smiling up at him.

“Pikachu, chu pika. Pikapi.”

Slowly, his breathing evened out and he managed a smile back.

“I won’t give up”, Ash said to it. He ran his hands down along its sides, and it purred happily. “I never give up. You never do, ether. And Greninja…”

He felt it in his chest, deep inside, like a second heart.

“Greninja is waiting. And it’s not giving up. Not without a fight.”

He stood up. His mind was clear now. Pikachu scrambled on his shoulder, gently leaning against the back of his head.

Ash faced the forest and kept going.

 

It didn’t take him long to find the compound after that.

He ran until suddenly, the forest cleared around him. He had reached the edge of a cliff and there, he finally saw the compound stretch below him. He studied it. Two sides of it were pretty tightly aligned with the surrounding cliffs, while the front of the building faced a forest. The yard was bigger on that side, gravel and low grass only, and Ash spotted at least three guards in the area. Chain-link fence surrounded the place. The only opening in it was located at the front.

Not so carefully, much to Pikachu’s disapproval, Ash slid down the rocky cliff edge and ended up in a narrow patch of wild growth at its base. He instantly went for the fence. It was quite high, at least three times as tall as he was, but he could climb. It would be no problem. Except…

He took a step back, considering the fence. There was thick barbed wire along the top of it and in few lines woven through the chain links. It wouldn’t be impossible to climb over it, but he would definitely hurt himself and rip his clothes. He hoped to find another way. He started walking alongside it. Maybe there would be a hole in it somewhere, and he could sneak through.

And that was how he found Greninja.

The relief was a physical thing. Greninja was there, right in front of him. He grinned from ear to ear. Greninja looked back, wonder in its exhausted eyes.

“You’re all right!” Ash whispered excitedly. “And you’re out! Now we just need to-”

Suddenly, there was the blue glow of Greninja’s cut and it slashed at the fence.

Ash felt the contact in his arm, and he winced in sympathy. The move hadn’t done much damage to the fence. It had cut through some of the chain links but bounced back then. The metal of it was thick, gleaming in the sun. The fence looked brand new.

Greninja growled in frustration and tried again.

The move cut through few more links, but Ash quickly realized they wouldn’t get far like this. He took a step forward and wrapped his fingers around the chain links, leaning as close to Greninja as he could.

“Hey, it’s all right”, he told it. “Let’s try something else.”

Greninja stepped closer. It brushed its knuckles against his fingers, closing its eyes briefly. Ash knew it was at its limits, physically and mentally. His stomach twisted.

He glanced around and got an idea.

“Pikachu, could you cut through with iron tail?”

Pikachu considered this and nodded then, activating iron tail. There was close to no space for it to maneuver, but it jumped up anyway, its tail slicing cleanly through the chain links as it landed. After few more of those, there would be a big enough hole for Greninja.

Ash grinned in relief. “Awesome!”

“Pika pikachu!”

“Try it again!”

Pikachu climbed back up to his shoulder and crouched in preparation.

That was when something smashed into Ash. Hard. He staggered back, hitting the cliff wall. Dust billowed and his world spun. The next thing he knew, he was flat on his back, staring up at the sky.

“I got them!” someone was shouting in the distance. “The boy and the greninja too! They are behind block C! I repeat, I need assistance!”

Ash sat up. His shoulder was on fire and judging by the way his head throbbed, he had probably hit it somewhere on the way down. He looked around, squinting through the pain.

Pikachu was at his feet, covering him from whoever had attacked them. On the other side of the fence, Greninja was pacing, the look of pure anger on its face.

“Graveler, use rock slide again!”

Ash blinked, still slightly disoriented, but Pikachu was ready. It jumped into the air, and its iron tail easily obliterated the other pokemon’s attack.

“Alright, use take down!”

Ash grabbed the fence with his left hand and pulled himself up. He rolled his right shoulder experimentally and it hurt, but not blindingly so. Probably not broken, then.

He watched the fight. Pikachu and the graveler crashed into each other in front of him. Pikachu jumped back from it, slightly ruffled. The graveler staggered on the spot, stunned.

“Iron tail, Pikachu”, Ash said, even though Pikachu was already preparing for it. The move left the graveler fainted on the ground, and the goon called it back to its poke ball. He stared at Ash, speaking urgently into a radio phone.

“Where is everybody? I need assistance, now!”

Pikachu dashed back to Ash, concern in its eyes.

“I’m fine, buddy”, he reassured it. “Great job with the battle!”

“Pikaa…”

 

Ash turned to Greninja. Then, he glanced past it, and froze.

 

On the roof of the building, just few meters above Greninja, stood Lysandre. His pyroar stood next to him, its mean grin and flame-like mane matching Lysandre’s perfectly. Lysandre had his hands in his pockets, posture relaxed. He was watching them with a crooked smile.

Dread crashed through Ash. “Greninja, watch out!” he yelled, but it was already too late. Lysandre raised the remote controller, and both Greninja and Ash went down.

“I know, a cheap move”, Lysandre called smugly. “But what can you do.”

Ash couldn’t breathe. He crouched on the ground, every fiber of his being on fire. He saw Pikachu preparing for an attack and watched as it directed a desperate thunderbolt towards Lysandre. It was fruitless. The metallic fence between them ate most of the power and the attack fell short.

Lysandre released the button, and Ash shot back up.

“Lysandre!” he screamed. “Stop it! Stop hurting Greninja!”

“I will”, the man answered, frustratingly calm. “Just do as I tell you, and no one hast to get hurt.”

Ash looked at Greninja and the rest of the world faded. It hadn’t gotten up, still kneeling on the ground and trembling ever so slightly. Ash worried his lip, reconsidering his options. It was clear Greninja couldn’t take many more hits.

“It’s fascinating, though”, Lysandre was saying, and Ash looked back up at him. “The bond between you two. How you found us with no physical maps. I saw the footage from the lab too, the way Greninja escaped. Was that partly you, Ash? That power… I have never seen anything like it.”

Ash knees wobbled and he grabbed the fence for support with his left hand. He felt faint, ailing. “What do you want, Lysandre?” he asked.

“Oh, to start with, Ash, I just want to speak with you. I know I went at it the wrong way last time, but I was quite pressed for time. You must forgive me.” He actually sounded apologetic, and Ash suppressed a shudder. “This time, I want us to work together, so we can both gain something great from this.”

“I’m not gonna help you with anything”, snapped Ash.

He winced. His shoulder throbbed terribly, and he was starting to think it might be dislocated.

Lysandre answered: “I’m not really asking.”

Ash looked around. In both directions his ways out were blocked by multiple goons and their pokemon. On the other side of the fence, few people had surrounded Greninja, ready to contain it. Ash briefly considered calling out his other pokemon, or using Pikachu’s Z-move, but he quickly abandoned those ideas. There were simply too many of them, and there would be no way he was getting Greninja out with him either way.

He was out of options. Greninja needed time to recover and frankly, so did he.

With a heavy heart, he nodded at Pikachu. They had a plan for this situation, though they had hoped it never came to happen. The pokemon whined, quiet and sad, ears down. Ash turned his back to the fence and to Lysandre. He crouched down and put his palms together.

“Now, Pikachu”, he murmured.

“What are you doing, Ash?”

Pikachu hopped onto his hands. They looked at each other for a moment – a silent goodbye. Then, ignoring the pain and the exhaustion, Ash sprung up with all his strength and launched Pikachu into the air. Far above anyone’s reach, Pikachu grabbed onto the steep cliffside and started climbing. Pebbles and dust rained down on them, and the grunts stared after it in stunned confusion.

Lysandre yelled: “Seize them! And stop that pikachu!”

The world exploded into action. Ash stood still, hands slack on his sides. He breathed out slowly, forcing himself to calm down. It was done. One of the goons advanced on him and grabbed his shoulders, slamming him against the fence. The fence rattled and… With a shock of discomfort, Ash’s shoulder popped back into place. The pain instantly eased, leaving just a dull ache behind.

It surprised him so much he blurted out “Thanks” to the man holding him. Then he blinked, baffled.

“Uh, sure”, replied the man, equally confused.

“Bring them to the lobby. I’ll meet you there”, Lysandre ordered. “And catch that damn pikachu!”

Ash watched as the end of Pikachu’s tail disappeared over the cliff edge. One of the guards slapped thick metal cuffs on his wrists and took hold of his arm. With a forceful snap, the cuffs attached to each other like magnets and left Ash with very restricted movement. The guard tugged at his arm.

“Let’s go, kid”, he grunted.

Ash stumbled after him. They walked around the building and through the front gates. Greninja was brought around the building too, flanked by two guards. Ash tried to catch its eyes, but it was keeping its head down, barely making effort in walking.

Worry gnawed in Ash’s chest. He wanted to run to it, touch it, see if it was okay. Though of course, he knew it wasn’t okay. It was horrible to see it like that. Thin and pale, dragged along by faceless men.

Ash felt rage, deep inside him. Not only at Lysandre and his operation, but also at himself. If he’d gotten here sooner…

“Hey, watch it”, snapped the man holding him, pulling on his arm roughly. Ash whipped his head around and noticed they had already crossed the lawn and nearly reached the front door. He had been about to trip over in the steps leading up to it, and the guard was not hiding his annoyance. Ash shuffled his feet, stalling. He looked the man up and down, evaluating his chances of success. The guy was pretty big and mean-looking, but hey, weren’t they all?

Either way, Ash didn’t really care anymore. He had to see Greninja.

He stopped abruptly, digging his heels into the ground and fighting against the guard’s pull. The guard halted and turned an irritated glare at him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” he hissed trough his teeth. “Come on!”

“I’m sorry about this”, Ash said seriously.

The man blinked, puzzled, and Ash acted. Using the man’s hold as leverage, he leaned back with all his weight and kicked him straight into the side of his knee. The man screamed, and Ash was free.

He knew he only had few seconds. He sprinted across the yard, reaching Greninja before anyone had realized what was happening. Ash’s hands were still shackled together in front, but he raised them, gently taking Greninja’s head in his palms.

“Greninja”, he breathed.

Its skin was cold and clammy. It looked unhealthy, barely there. But then the pokemon opened its eyes, and Ash took a surprised breath.

There was fire in Greninja’s gaze. Determination. Even Ash had missed it – it hadn’t given up yet. No, it had a plan.

They looked at each other and a deep feeling of calm overtook Ash. He wasn’t sure if it came from Greninja or from him, but it was a different sort of power altogether.

“Be careful”, Ash whispered. Greninja closed its eyes, nodding ever so slightly. Ash dropped his hands and took a step back.

Arms wrapped around him and he let himself be hefted away. He took the moment to look around. Every guard on the yard was staring at him, hands on their belts. The guard he had kicked was sitting on the steps, massaging his leg and glaring daggers in his direction.

“Let’s make this clear, boy”, growled the man who now had him. He dropped Ash back on the ground and took his arm in death grip. Ash thought he looked even bigger and meaner-looking than the previous guy.

“Boss said to be nice with you”, he grumbled, “but if you do somethin’ like that to me, I’m breakin’ your fingers.”

“I just needed to see it”, Ash said, aiming for a meek voice. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry don’t cut it here”, the man answered. “Only boss’s word.”

Ash glanced back at Greninja, but the pokemon had its head down again. The guard tugged at his arm and reluctantly, Ash followed him up the steps and into the front lobby of the building. Lysandre was already standing there, waiting. He had his arms crossed and his pinstripe suit was straining against his wide shoulders. Ash had forgotten how tall he was. He looked imposing, bigger than life.

The guard pushed Ash forward but kept one heavy hand on his shoulder. A reminder to not do anything he might regret. Ash took a stand, head held high, and stared Lysandre down.

“What happened out there, Ash?” asked Lysandre. Like he was scolding a little kid.

“I’m not letting you have Pikachu”, Ash told him.

“Is that so?”, Lysandre asked, sounding mildly amused. “And why is that?”

Ash could think up million reasons for that. Gods, he missed Pikachu already.

“There’s nothing special about it”, he said instead. “And you already have Greninja and me.”

“Ah, so there is something special about you two?”

“You seem to think so, I guess.”

Lysandre laughed at that. Then he grinned, a weird gleam in his eyes.

“We will see”, he stated cryptically. He walked closer, studying Ash carefully. “Well, don’t you look exhausted. No wonder you are being so snappy.”

Ash had no idea what to say to that.

“Are you hungry? I could get you some dinner”, Lysandre continued, clearly not minding the silence. “We should have that cut looked at, too.”

Ash didn’t know what he was referring to with that, but the thought of getting to sit down and rest for a bit seemed overwhelmingly good at that point. He didn’t want to sit down with Lysandre, but he supposed his opinion really didn’t matter now.

“I guess I’m a bit hungry”, he said blankly.

“Excellent”, Lysandre smiled, clapping his hands together. He scanned the room, smile slowly dropping. “Where is that greninja?”

He pointed at one of the guards standing by the wall. Sudden anger carved deep lines into his scarred face. “Didn’t I tell you to bring it in?”

The guard stuttered something and ducked out of the door. Ash stared after him, restless to see Greninja again. Soon it was brought in by the two guards and Ash unconsciously tried to take a step towards it. The hand on his shoulder tightened.

“Ah, there it is”, exclaimed Lysandre. He turned to look at Ash. “It has been causing us quite a lot of trouble, did you know?”

Before Ash had time to answer, a woman standing slightly behind Lysandre stepped forward, pointing a finger at Greninja.

“That little shit attacked me out of nowhere!” she shrieked. “I could’ve died!”

Ash recognized the woman as Celosia. The woman who had delivered him to Lysandre back during the Crisis. He definitely didn’t have any warm feelings towards her.

“I think it just did all it could to survive”, Ash pointed out, an edge of hostility in his voice.

Celosia froze for a second and then turned to him, pointing her finger and staring like she was seeing him for the first time. “And you! I saw you and your happy little gang in the news that day _. The heroes of Kalos_. You dare call yourself the good guys when you left the boss to die! Mable and I had to dig his half dead body out of the rubble by ourselves. I bet you’re proud of that, are you, _Ash_?”

She spat out his name like a curse.

Ash’s eyes widened. “We... we didn’t know-“

“Right! I’m sure you were really concerned for his wellbeing!”

Lysandre put a hand on her arm. “It’s all right. Thank you, Celosia.”

He waved his arm, taking control of the room once again.

“Bring the greninja closer”, he ordered.

Ash watched as Greninja was pushed forward, and then, like it was happening in slow motion, he saw how its knees gave out and it fell to the ground.

“Greninja!” he cried out.

The guards tried to pull it up, but it was limp, listless. Ash fought against the man holding him until he wrapped an arm around his throat, just light enough to not block his airway, and pressed him against his broad chest. Ash stilled, getting the message.

“What’s wrong with it?” asked one of the guards by Greninja. “We didn’t do nothing to it, I promise!”

Lysandre looked from Greninja to Ash. “Do you know, Ash?”

Ash strained to get a better look, but people were now swarming around it, blocking his view.

“I don’t”, he answered honestly. Then, more urgently: “Please, can I see it?”

Lysandre considered him for a moment before turning back to the guards.

“Alright”, roared Lysandre. “Everyone settle down and take back your positions. Let me check it out.”

In the moment of confusion, as the crowd thinned out, Ash felt his adrenaline spike.

He only realized it was Greninja when it was all too late. He went tense against the guard holding him, shouting “Don’t!” before anything had even happened.

 

And then it did.

 

Greninja, lightning fast, had shot up and dashed across the room before anyone had even had time to blink. There was a crash and a scream, and Ash watched helplessly as Greninja beat down Celosia.

Greninja was on top of her, pressing her body hard against the floor. It grabbed her shoulders, slamming her down with force, again and again. She wailed in fear and pain, covering her head with her arms.

Ash screamed: “Greninja!”

He struggled frantically against the man, kicking his shins and digging his nails into the restricting arm, but he was immovable. He just tightened his hold, pressing on Ash’s throat until he could only take thin gasps of breath.

“Please don’t, Greninja”, Ash uttered, desperate.

Through the chaos, Ash singled out Lysandre’s form. He was standing still, eyes wide and filled with rage, staring at the scene. Ash saw him take up the remote controller.

He prepared for the pain, but it never came. Ash blinked. He didn’t understand what was happening. Greninja had rolled off Celosia and was twitching on the floor. It panted in pain, its body rolling into a tight ball.

Ash limbs had gone numb. The only thing keeping him up by then was the guard behind him. He could only stare at Greninja. At its different form.

Greninja had de-evolved. Just to protect him.

Lysandre pocketed the remote controller. Celosia scrambled away and leaned against the far wall, gasping and shaking. Greninja laid still, barely breathing.

The room was deathly silent.

Lysandre turned in a slow circle, facing Ash. His features were carved in stone.

“Please”, whispered Ash. “Please, let me help it.”

He tasted salt on his tongue and realized he was crying. Lysandre stayed still, his frown tightening just the slightest bit. Then, after a moment that felt like eternity, he nodded.

The guard released his hold and Ash stumbled forward. His legs barely held him up, but, somehow, he reached Greninja and dropped down next to it. He put a hand on its chest and felt its heart beating, weak but still alive.

He murmured, his voice barely there: “Greninja, please wake up.”

He brushed his fingers along its forehead and saw its eyelids fluttering, just the tiniest movement. He stilled. He knew Lysandre was standing just behind him, observing them. Ash ran his hand along Greninja’s arm and took its hands into his own. That’s when he knew; this had been Greninja’s plan all along.

“You were brave”, he whispered. “Thank you.”

Lysandre put a hand on his shoulder. “That is enough, Ash”, he said.

Ash stood up, his whole body trembling with exhaustion. Lysandre pulled him away from Greninja, and Ash watched as a group of guards lifted it on a stretcher and took it away.

“You will help it, right?” he asked, his voice hoarse. “It was just scared. Please, you gotta understand.”

Lysandre looked down at him, his gaze heavy.

“We will help it”, he said. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

Ash breathed out: “Thank you.”

“I will show you to you room and we can get you something to eat. Does that sound alright?”

Ash nodded silently.

Lysandre put his hand between Ash’s shoulder blades and gently pushed him along, like a father would his misbehaved son. Ash let him do it, all the while squeezing his fingers around the object Greninja had slipped into his hand.


	14. Alone

Lysandre paused in front of the door to balance the tray of food onto one hand.

The soup smelled amazing. It was thick and creamy, straight from the pot.He had picked up few rolls of freshly baked bread too, just to appear even more accommodating. He also brought two glasses of beverages – one of milk and one water. He didn’t know if Ash was lactose intolerant, after all. He was thoughtful like that.

Lysandre buzzed the lock and pushed the door open. He stepped in, letting the heavy door clang closed behind him. Ash was sitting by the table in the front part of the room. He had his head rested on his folded arms, but he jumped at the noise and raised his head. For the briefest moment he just looked sleepy and confused, until his eyes fixated on Lysandre and his face fell into a scowl.

“Hello, Ash”, Lysandre greeted. “How are you doing? I brought you some soup.”

Ash tensed, sitting up with his back ramrod straight. His hands on the tabletop were shaking minutely.

“Where did you take my pokemon?” he asked. His voice was quiet but steady.

Lysandre set the tray on the table in front of Ash. The boy eyed the food but did not reach for it.

“I promise you they are safe”, Lysandre said gently. “Please, try the soup. It’s really good.” He pulled back the chair on the opposite side of the table and sat down. He folded his hands on his lap, relaxing against the chairback.

Ash did not relax. His scowl deepened and his hands balled into fists.

“Where are they?”

Lysandre had taken his belt and backpack before escorting him to the current room. He hadn’t resisted much then, but Lysandre guessed he had still been quite shocked about his greninja. Now, he clearly wasn’t happy to be separated from them.

He supposed it would do no harm to tell him.

“They are just on the floor above. Perfectly safe in their poke balls.”

“And Greninja?”

“It is with my trusted nurse, getting the best care possible.”

Ash didn’t look convinced, still staring at him like he was the devil incarnated – or worse.

Lysandre sighed. “Like I have told you many times, Ash, I do not wish harm on you or your greninja. But you two hold something special, something so powerful it has never been seen before. There are things in this world that are more important than others, and one of those is power. You might be too young to understand how _much_ the right kind of power can get you. And how much people are willing to do to acquire that power.”

Ash looked away. He stared down at his hands, opening them and laying his fingers flat against the table.  

“I know about power”, he said slowly. “I know it makes people and pokemon go crazy. I know it makes them do horrible things. I have seen it many times.”

He looked up, staring Lysandre straight in the eye. “And I have seen you. You’re one of those people.”

Lysandre was speechless for a minute. He had to shake himself internally to recover, to appear unfazed. He raised his eyebrows, leaning forward. Ash, unconsciously, pulled back.

“That is a big accusation, Ash”, Lysandre said, working hard to keep his voice steady. He was beginning to get frustrated by the audacity of the kid. “You might see me as some sort of megalomaniac but when you take all my big words away, in the heart I am just a scientist. And science never makes progress without big breakthroughs. I’m on the brink of one right now, Ash. You are too.”

He grinned and spread out his hands, getting a bit carried away by his vision. “So, let’s work together and make that discovery, together!”

Ash’s eyes widened and he opened his mouth, just to close it again with a click. He bit his lip, hesitating.

“I dunno what you want from me”, he eventually said, voice slightly unsteady.

Lysandre tilted his head, considering him. His face was pale and drawn and there was still blood smeared on his forehead, part of his hair sticky with it.

“You don’t have to worry about that just yet”, he answered with a friendly smile. “For now, I just want you to rest and get your strength back. You should eat while the food is still warm.”

He pushed the tray forward again, right up to Ash. Ash swallowed, staring at him for a moment longer and then at the bowl of soup. Tardily, he picked up the plastic spoon and dipped it into the broth. Lysandre could see he was famished but still, he ate the first spoonful slowly, pausing then to look back at Lysandre.

“It’s good”, he said quietly. “Thanks.”

Lysandre was pleased. “You are welcome.”

Ash put the spoon back into the soup, pushing it around the edges. He was silent for a minute.

Then, cautiously, he asked: “Could I be alone?”

Lysandre realized he was still leaning forward, looming into Ash’s space. He sat back, lowering his chin.

“I’m afraid not, Ash.”

The room fell into silence again. Little by little, Ash ate the soup, not looking up at him anymore. He nibbled on the bread rolls and drank some of the water. When the plate was empty, he put the spoon down carefully and leaned back.

“Thank you”, he said impassively. He still didn’t look at Lysandre.

“My pleasure”, answered Lysandre. He took out the first aid pack he had grabbed on the way in and placed it on the table. “Are you sure you don’t want me to patch up that cut?”

Ash frowned, tensing up again. “I can do it myself”, he said curtly. Lysandre shrugged, pulling his hands back. He watched as Ash snatched the bag closer and took out some antiseptic wipes and a roll of medical tape. He didn’t have a mirror, but his hands were sure as he pushed back his hair and wiped his forehead clean. He felt around the edges of the scratch and with practiced fingers sealed it with the tape. He combed a hand through his hair and dried flakes of blood rained on the table.

He took a deep breath, his whole body moving with it.

“Can I see my pokemon?” he asked. He was looking at Lysandre again, jaw set.

“Maybe later”, Lysandre answered, aiming for an amicable tone. “I promised you they are in good hands.”

“They have never spent that long in their poke balls”, Ash continued. He spoke quicker now, like he wanted it said and done as soon as possible. “They are gonna be really scared and confused if they are left all alone like that. You should let them out at least for a moment.”

Lysandre was surprised by the request. He had to admit he was curious to see what pokemon Ash currently had – if it was not the same powerful team he had the last time they met. Apparently not, since he didn’t see that team of pokemon to be afraid of anything. Probably new pokemon from the Alola region then, if the Z-ring Ash had was anything to go by.

“I’ll see what I can do”, he answered vaguely. Ash clearly wasn’t pleased by it, but he didn’t argue further. Instead, he rolled his shoulders, finally relaxing the tiniest bit.

“I think I could try to sleep now”, he said, blinking slow and tired. He stood up and walked to the sofa bed Lysandre had set up for him. There wasn’t much else in the room besides that and the table, but Lysandre still scanned the space carefully for anything that could be used to aid an escape. There were no windows, no shelves or cupboards of any kind. It would be fine.

“That’s great”, he said, standing up too. Ash sat stiffly on the very edge of the sofa, staring up at him expectantly. Lysandre got the hint; he needed to leave. He picked up the tray and walked to the door, pausing at the doorway. “I’ll give you few hours to rest. After that, I think it will be time I showed you what I’ve been working on.”

Ash nodded. Lysandre stepped out into the hallway and let the door click shut behind him.

 

* * *

 

Bonnie stared up at the sky.

She was tired but the thought of falling asleep seemed almost impossible. She shivered, pulling the sleeping bag tighter around her shoulders. She turned onto her side, facing her friends.

“Do you think he’s okay?” she quietly asked.

No one had to ask who she was talking about.

“I hope so, Bonnie”, said Clemont drowsily. He was laying on his stomach, sketching something in the low light of the evening.

“But we haven’t seen any bad guys”, Bonnie insisted, and Clemont put his pen down, turning to look at her. “Ash said if they get him, then all the bad guys will leave the forest, right? So maybe he’s in trouble now.”

“Ash isn’t always right, Bonnie”, said Serena. She sat up, brushing her messy hair away from her face. “We don’t know how that operation works. Maybe they had to stop searching for some other reason.”

Bonnie thought Serena didn’t sound that convinced with her own words.

“Well, if you think about it”, Lana proposed from the other side of the campfire, “if Ash managed to get Greninja out, then Lysandre’s men would be here searching for them for sure. So…”

“Maybe he’s still thinking about how to best approach the place”, reasoned Clemont. He had abandoned his sketch book completely by then. He sat up too, adjusting his glasses.

Kiawe, who had still been up and managing the feeble fire, raised his eyebrows at Clemont.

“I don’t know Ash as well as you do, for sure”, he said softly, “but I feel like he really isn’t the thinking type. More like the opposite of that. In my experience.”

“But he isn’t stupid”, said Serena, her voice tight. “He knows when the enemy is too great for him to just rush into it without a plan.”

“Does he?”

Everyone turned to look at Bonnie. She was still curled up in her sleeping bag, but she wasn’t sleepy anymore. She looked up at her friends, eyes big and heavy.

“What if he didn’t stop to think at all?” she continued quietly. “You know how he was with Greninja. After all that’s happened this week, I dunno if he is thinking straight at all.”

“Yeah, we probably shouldn’t expect Ash to be rational about this”, agreed Lana. “I have never seen him as upset as he was today. Not that I can blame him.”

Clemont sighed and shared a look with Serena. “I hate to admit it, but I think Bonnie might be right. If Ash saw any opportunity to help Greninja, I’m quite sure he took it already. And we don’t know how many goons Lysandre has nowadays. Ash is very capable of defending himself, but they might’ve been able to surprise or overpower him either way.”

Serena looked away, cheeks flushed and eyes moist. “Oh, gods. We shouldn’t have let him leave.”

“Probably not, yeah”, Clemont admitted glumly.

They fell quiet for a moment. Dedenne was fidgeting restlessly next to Bonnie, and she grabbed it gently and pressed it against her chest.

“Shh, everything’s gonna be okay”, she hushed.

“Dene…”

Its cheeks sparked, giving Bonnie a minor electric shock. She jerked, mostly in surprise, and brought the pokemon up to her face.

“Careful, Dedenne!”

“Denene! Dene!” It squirmed in Bonnie’s hands, wiggling until it managed to slip free. Its cheeks were sparkling stronger now. It bounced away from her, staring intensely into the forest.

Bonnie rubbed her eyes, sitting up. “What it is?”

Everyone was now watching Dedenne, anxiously waiting for something to happen. Dedenne didn’t seem scared, per se, but it was definitely agitated.

“Is someone coming?” whispered Clemont. He shifted so he was sitting on his knees, preparing to protect Bonnie from whoever was approaching.

Dedenne cooed in low voice, its tail tense and motionless. The group held their breaths, straining to see any movement in the dark forest.

Seconds later, the bushes rattled, and a stronger spark of electricity flashed in the air – and then a dust-covered Pikachu dashed into the campsite.

 

* * *

 

The second Lysandre closed the door behind him, Ash bent down and took off his shoe.

He turned it over above his hand and a black circular object on a short chain dropped onto his palm. He brought it closer to his face, turning it over in his fingers. It looked kind of like a key ring, but there was no actual key attached to it. Just a flat object with no writing or other marks on it.

This was what Greninja had risked its life for.

Ash closed his eyes, feeling sudden frustration by the uncertainty. The object had been Celosia’s. Ash looked at it again. He had been sure it would be a key, but he hadn’t had a chance to really look at it before now. He had held it in his fist all the way when they took the elevator down and while walking through the hallways, and the first moment Lysandre looked away he had slipped it into his shoe.

And now he had it in his hands again, but he still had no idea what it was.

“What were you thinking, Greninja?” he murmured into the empty room. He leaned back, settling into the sofa bed. His whole body ached. It felt unimaginably good to lie down. He blinked slowly, half asleep already. He raised the keychain above him, spinning it idly around in his fingers. Looking at it against the stark white ceiling, it kind of reminded him of the remote car key his mom had.

Ash froze, staring at the object. His pulse skyrocketed.

An electrical key fob.

He stood up and paced around the room with new vigor. If it was one, he had to think about his next move carefully. If it really could open any – or even most – doors in the building, it would change everything.

Ash eyed the locked door of his room. At the very least he was going to have to wait until Greninja was fully healed. It would do no good to rush out right away. He was deep underground and he now knew how many goons Lysandre had working for him, watching the place. Greninja was held somewhere in the building and so were his other pokemon.

At the moment, he was completely alone.

Ash sat back down, squeezing his fingers around the key fob. He spotted the roll of medical tape Lysandre had left for him on the table, and an idea started forming in his head.

He would wait for now. And when it was time to act, he would be ready.

 

* * *

 

“Pikaa, pikapi pika pikachu-!”

Bonnie wriggled out of her sleeping bag. Pikachu was blabbering, running around in a circle, cheeks sparkling with agitation. Ash had not followed it out of the forest.

“Hey, Pikachu”, Bonnie called softly. It paused to look at her, and she crawled closer, encasing it into a tight hug. It was trembling all over, whining under its breath.

“You’re safe now”, she whispered. Her throat felt tight. She was so worried she felt like she was about to burst into tears any moment. She sniffled, petting Pikachu until it calmed down enough to focus on her. “Where’s Ash?”

It wailed a low “pikaa…”. Its legs wobbled and it sat down, completely spent.

“It must have been running around looking for us for hours”, Clemont wondered aloud. He crawled next to Bonnie and placed his hand on Pikachu’s back. “It’s exhausted. I don’t see any major damage though, fortunately.”

“So they really did get Ash”, said Lana gravely.

Bonnie looked around. Serena had her hands in front of her mouth, shocked to her core. Kiawe was scowling, fists clenched and fire in his eyes. Dedenne nudged Pikachu’s nose and they had a short conversation through electricity. Clemont sat back and levelled a serious look at each of their friends.

“I know you all are scared for Ash and want to rush to help – I do, too – but hear me out. He’s tough. He can take care of himself for one day.” His voice wavered and he took a deep breath, calming himself. “I suggest we stay put and rest for tonight, like we had planned. I have an idea how we might be able to help Ash and Greninja escape, but I need time to build the machines for that. That will take some focus and I’m way too tired now to do anything. We all are. Even you, Pikachu”, he added, when the pokemon raised its head defiantly.

Serena dropped her hands, sighing deeply. “Clemont is right. We need to approach this very carefully. Let’s try to get at least few hours of sleep and then we can go through our thoughts for the plan.”

“Yeah, I have few ideas too”, Kiawe said with a nod. “But I will need to see the building first. How many entrances there are, how many guards patrolling, things like that. We need to go observe the building when the sun has risen again.”

“I hate waiting around, but I guess you guys are right”, Lana agreed. “We really need the rest.”

Bonnie glanced down at Pikachu. “What do you say, Pikachu?”

It looked up at her, eyes wide and desperate.

“You know Ash the best”, Bonnie added softly. “Is he gonna be okay for tonight?”

Pikachu’s ears flattened against its head. It looked away, hesitating. Then, it nodded.

Bonnie smiled. She crawled back into her sleeping bag and kept the opening stretched with her hand, leaving space for the pokemon. Dedenne sprinted in, curling up on her stomach. Pikachu edged closer too, settling gingerly against her shoulder.

“I’m proud of you”, Bonnie whispered to it. “Tomorrow, we are gonna save Ash together.”


	15. Anger

In the pale light of early morning, they got to work.

Kiawe had just left with Pikachu to scout the compound, and the girls were preparing their backpacks for the day. Clemont was deep in thought, crouched over his build, when Serena said: “I think we should call Alain.”

He raised his head and turned to look at her. “Huh? Why?”

“Think about it”, said Serena. “He worked with Lysandre for a long time. He might be able to help us.”

Clemont rubbed his chin. “That’s right, actually. Do you think he’ll have time for us?”

“Don’t be silly, big bro”, huffed Bonnie. “If he hears Ash is in trouble, I’m sure he’s gonna drop everything to help. I bet he hates Lysandre even more than we do.”

“I guess that’s true”, Clemont said with a small smile. “We could try to call him. Erm, or could you do it, Serena? I need to continue this build, or it will never be ready in time…”

“Yeah, sure”, Serena replied. She fished her mobile out of her bag. It had a tiny screen for video calls and she and Bonnie crowded around it. It took a moment for the call to connect, but finally Alain’s face popped on the screen.

“Serena and Bonnie? What’s up?” he asked, rubbing his eyes. He had shaved, but his hair was all over the place and his face was pale with exhaustion.

Serena was suddenly at a loss for words. “Hey, Alain, um… We- we need your help.”

It came out much more bluntly than what she had meant to, and Alain’s whole demeanor changed into a state of alarm.

“What is it? Are you guys okay?” He leaned closer to the screen, eyes wide. “Did you find Lysandre?”

“Well, yeah, we kind of did”, Serena said, shrugging helplessly. “We, um… Well, Ash…”

“Ash’s with him right now”, Bonnie blurted out. “He ran off yesterday and got caught.”

Alain blinked a few times, face blank. “He ran off… and got caught? By Lysandre?”

Serena nodded. She got the sudden urge to cry, but she breathed in deep, holding it back. There was no time for a breakdown. Few seconds of anxious silence ticked by.

Then Alain’s face twisted, and he slammed his fist into the table, making both Serena and Bonnie jump. “Fuck!” he yelled. He stood up and paced away, turning on his heels then and striding back to the screen. “We need to get him out RIGHT NOW. What in the name of Arceus are you still doing sitting around? How could you let him just… Ah, _fuck_!”

Serena felt frozen in place. Bonnie had drawn her knees up to her chest. She was in tears. Serena didn’t know when it had happened, but Lana had abandoned her project and was leaning over their shoulders, addressing Alain.

“Hey dude, calm down”, she said sternly. “We have a plan and it’s gonna work, so just chill it. We know we messed up and we are already blaming ourselves enough for it.”

Alain was still clearly upset, but he nodded, closing his eyes briefly. “You’re right”, he ground out. He breathed out slowly, his shoulders deflating. “I’m sorry. It’s not- It’s just that we should’ve known this would happen. I should’ve known.”

He brushed both of his hands through his hair, making it stick up even more. “Fucking hell”, he mumbled under his breath.

“I’m sorry”, Serena whispered, though she didn’t really know to whom. Next to her, Bonnie hiccuped and furiously rubbed her eyes.

“Hey, let’s focus, right?” Alain began after a moment of silence. His voice was controlled now, determined.  “You called me for a reason. How can I help?”

Nodding, Serena squared her shoulders and breathed in deep. “Right. So, this is our plan…”

 

* * *

 

The world was burning.

Ash stared down over the carnage, everything around him dead, destroyed. Thick smoke made the surroundings blurry and it was difficult to see any details. He knew he was standing on top of the tallest building of the city, the concrete of it feeling cold and rough under his feet.

Cold and rough?

Ash looked down. He had no shoes on, his bare feet exposed to the elements, burning and freezing at the same time. He blinked, not understanding. Why would he…

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” someone said, and Ash whipped his head around. Lysandre was standing next to him, smiling blissfully. “And it’s all thanks to you.”

A shock of dread ran through Ash. “Wh-what?”

“Now it is just you and me – and our trusted companions who we deemed worthy of survival. The rest… well, it was their time to go. This world cannot support everyone”, Lysandre continued, unaware or just uncaring of his distress.

“What are you talking about?” stammered Ash.

Lysandre stretched out his hand, waving it above the burning city at their feet. “We are the new leaders of this world, Ash”, he declared. He turned to smile at Ash, and his face was twisted and foul like a monster’s.

“No…”

Ash took a step back, and his foot grazed the edge of the building. There was nothing but death underneath him, and nothing to catch himself on. His vision sparkled and swam.

“It was you, Ash – your power. Together with my inventions, we rule this new world!”

Ash screamed: “No!” and the building crumbled under his feet and the world lit up in blue flames-

 

 

Ash woke up in cold sweat, breath catching and heart racing. He sat up and leaned his head between his knees. It took a minute before he was able to draw his breath fully again.

_Just a dream just a dreamjustadream…_

He lifted his head, staring down at his hands. They were trembling… and empty. He needed Pikachu.  The nightmares were nothing new – he had dealt with those since he started his pokemon journey – but Pikachu had always been there when things got tough for him. Usually, just its presence was enough to calm him down. But this time, it wasn’t with him.

He felt so alone.

Ash stood up and paced around the room. The walls were falling on him, the room suffocating in its smallness. He braced himself against the wall and looked down at his feet. Rationally, he knew he had his shoes on, the key fob hidden in his right one feeling heavy against his ankle, but really seeing it was an enormous relief. The dream had been so vivid, almost too clear to be just a product of his subconscious mind. The way Lysandre had talked about this new world, about _him_ …

The door rattled and Ash stood up straighter. He breathed in deep, channeling his anxiety into anger. It was an old and tested method of his, but it had been a long time since he had last used it to this extent.

Fist clenched, jaw set, the rage let Ash see everything more clearly.

“Oh, good, you are awake”, said Lysandre as he stepped in. He was smiling, much too wide for it to be real.

“Lysandre”, Ash growled. Lysandre leaned against the doorway and the large guard from earlier walked in past him. He had the cuffs in his hands, and he looked down at Ash.

“Give me your arms”, he gruffly said.

Ash didn’t take his eyes off Lysandre. He straightened his arms in front of him, and felt the cuffs close around his wrists. They snapped together, impairing his movement, and Ash flinched. He tried to mask it by taking an angry step towards Lysandre, but the guard grabbed his upper arm and yanked him back. Ash grimaced in pain; his shoulder was still aching from earlier.

“Easy now, Morris”, Lysandre tutted. His smile had faded, and he looked at Ash with calculating eyes. “Did you get any sleep? I’m happy to tell you your greninja is now fully healed.”

“Let me see it”, demanded Ash. His voice sounded hoarse, his throat parched and sore.

Lysandre sneered. “All in good time, Ash”, he said. “Let me show you around first, before I let you two do your little evolution trick.”

“It’s not a trick”, Ash frowned. “And I still don’t understand what you think you’re gonna get from us.”

“We will get to that”, answered Lysandre calmly. He looked at the guard, Morris, and nodded his head. “Follow me.”

With that, he turned on his heels and walked out of the room. Morris pulled on Ash’s arm and they followed the man to the hallway. Lysandre’s pyroar was waiting for them there, and it smirked at Ash before dashing after its master.

They stopped in front of the elevator. Lysandre reached out and pushed the down-button.

“Where are we going?”, Ash asked warily.

“To my main lab”, Lysandre answered. He turned to look at Ash and smiled oddly. “I can finally show you what I have been working on for so long! You know, this place was one of my secret research labs, long before the “crisis”, as they call it. Of course, the majority of my equipment wasn’t stored here, so the government got their hands on most of it. But some of it was safe and secure here and the rest – well, everything has almost completely been rebuilt.”

He tilted his head, his eyes drilling into Ash. “I’ve just been missing some key parts until now.”

Ash had to suppress a shudder, thinking about his dream.  “You will never win”, he stated, not looking away.

The air of calmness was gone in an instant. Lysandre’s eyes narrowed, his face clouding over with anger. His shoulders tensed and next to him, his pyroar growled, low and threatening.

Then the elevator dinged to their floor, and Lysandre turned away.

He snapped: “Come on.”

He walked into the elevator. Ash swallowed. Morris leaned closer and murmured: “Careful now”, before ushering him to follow.

 

* * *

 

They girls ended their call with Alain. Clemont watched as Serena sat back and buried her face in her hands for a moment.

“How’re you doing, big bro?” Bonnie asked.

Clemont glanced down at his build, rolling his shoulders. “Almost done”, he replied. He massaged his stiff neck and grimaced. “So, what did Alain say?”

The girls shared a look. “He thinks we need to move quickly”, Serena said heavily. “Lysandre wants something from Ash, and Alain knows he won’t care if he has to take it with force. And he has waited for an opportunity like this for a long time.”

Clemont nodded, his eyes big and glum behind his glasses. “We need to stop him before he goes too far.”

“Right”, said Serena. “We sent our coordinates to Alain, but he says he’s never been in this place. He still thinks Lysandre might’ve had it for a long time. Apparently, he mentioned his “other bases” a couple of times, but never took Alain with him to any of them. So, we really have no idea what we are working with here.”

“Great”, mumbled Clemont. He rubbed his temples, sighing. “So, you told him our plan? What did he say?”

“Well, he said Lysandre is pretty stupid”, announced Bonnie. Clemont blinked.

Serena coughed. “He didn’t say exactly that. But he did emphasize that Lysandre thinks quite highly of himself. When Alain worked for him, his security was never the best, and he tended to focus on his own projects instead of training his staff or making plans for unexpected situations. So, Alain approved of our plan. A well-planned surprise attack will be our best change to succeed.”

“Well, that’s good, at least”, said Clemont, feeling slightly more confident.

Lana, elbows deep in her backpack, called: “Tell him about the police.”

Clemont frowned. “What about the police?”

“Oh, right!” Serena sat up straighter and her eyes widened in agitation. She threw out her hands. “It’s bad, Clemont! Well… Alain tried to say that it’s not that bad, but still. It might have been so bad! Oh my gods…”

“Lysandre has a mole in the Kalosian police force”, explained Bonnie.

Clemont balked. “What?”

“Yeah. Only one as far as Alain knows”, Bonnie continued. “He had suspected it for a while, so he contacted one Jenny he knows personally. She pretty much confirmed it. There is an internal investigation going on in the police force, because some important information has been leaked.”

“What the hell”, Clemont huffed, and Bonnie shot a “that was a bad word” -glare at him. Clemont ignored it. “So, we can’t trust the police now? What if we had contacted them right away when Ash first arrived in Kalos?”

“That’s what I was thinking!” Serena exclaimed. “I don’t even want to imagine it. Lysandre would be far away by now and we would all be in grave danger.”

“Yeah.” There was a hollow pit in Clemont’s stomach, and he wrapped his arms around himself. He took a deep breath. “Well, at least we avoided one disaster. But now we need to focus on our current plan. You guys almost ready sorting our stuff?”

“Yup”, nodded Lana. She walked to a nearby fallen tree trunk and lifted one of the branches, revealing a hole beneath. “I found us a place to hide all the things we won’t need. The pots and other utensils, spare clothes and so on. Serena and I packed two backpacks between us with just the necessary things for today.”

“Great work! Now we just need to wait for Kiawe to return and tell us what he found out.”

As if on cue, a rustling noise emanated from behind him and Kiawe’s voice said: “I’m back.”

Clemont jumped and turned around. Kiawe and Pikachu emerged from the forest and paused at the edge of the campsite. They had very serious expressions on their faces. Bonnie threw her arms out and Pikachu dashed in for a hug.

“Hi guys”, greeted Lana. “How did it go?”

“Surprisingly smoothly”, answered Kiawe, and sat down with a weary sigh. He set Clemont’s spare sketch book on the ground in front of him and the rest of the group gathered around to look. It had the compound messily sketched on it. Kiawe had marked with crosses all the guards he had seen and drawn a big circle on one spot of the fence, titled: “Where Ash got caught?”

He saw Clemont looking at it and shrugged. “Yeah, Pikachu seemed to find that spot important. I think it might’ve been where it was with Ash, earlier.”

“Pika!” Pikachu confirmed from Bonnie’s lap.

“So, there is only one entrance into the compound”, continued Kiawe. “The fence goes all around the building, and the main entry is guarded by two people. One additional guard was standing there-“ He pointed at one of the corners of the yard. “That’s where they had their vans parked. I didn’t see anyone else around.”

“Alright, looks okay so far”, said Clemont, suddenly feeling almost hopeful.

“Yeah, not too bad, is it?” agreed Kiawe. “I think what Pikachu was telling me about the fence was that it is very tall and tough, but it can be cut through with moves like its iron tail. So, I suggest we split into two teams; one sneaks into the back and goes through the fence, while the other distracts the guards at the front.”

“Sounds good”, nodded Lana. She leveled her gaze at Clemont. “And how’s our distraction coming along?”

Clemont smiled. He crawled back to his build and picked up his screwdriver.

“Nearly done”, he affirmed. “Let me just finish this last bit, and then, it’s go time.”

 

* * *

 

It was the longest elevator ride of his life.

Lysandre had dropped every bit of his friendly act, and Ash could _feel_ his piercing eyes at the back of his neck.  Ash did his best to ignore it and just focus on watching the floor number go down: -4, -5, -6…

The cart dinged at -7, and the doors opened to another white corridor. Morris pushed on his shoulder and he stumbled out of the elevator. He looked around. This floor was much busier than the one he had been locked into. People in lab coats rushed along the hallway, their noses buried in clipboards or frantically talking with each other.

Though when they noticed him and Lysandre, everyone froze, eyes fixated on them, and it was instantly quiet in the hall.

Lysandre looked around slowly. “Continue, please”, he ordered. “I won’t need assistance just yet.”

For a moment, curious whispers could be heard all around, but gradually the staff carried on. Lysandre placed his hand on the back of Ash’s neck, and Morris stepped away. Ash went rigid, and he looked up at Lysandre, eyes wide.

“Come on, Ash”, Lysandre murmured, the tips of his nails gently but purposefully pressing onto his skin. “I promise; you will be impressed with what you’re about to see.”

He led Ash along the corridor, all the way to the big swinging doors at the end of it. They walked through and Ash saw… He blinked. It wasn’t at all what he had expected. The machine was surprisingly small in the center of the big space. What he could see, it  seemed to be just a tall and thin cylinder filled with swirling, glowing matter. Attached to it was also a control panel, a bunch of wires and some smaller parts that meant nothing to Ash.

“What is that?” he couldn’t help but ask.

“This, Ash”, said Lysandre with a borderline manic grin, “is the future!”

He released his hold on Ash and walked up to the control panel, picking up something from a container next to it. He held it in his fingers, showing it to Ash.

Ash stared at it, puzzled. “A… a mega stone?”

“Not quite”, chuckled Lysandre. “This is the first prototype of what I decided to call “a force jewel”. As of now, it draws its power from mega evolution energy, but it’s much more than that. I combined the magnificent research done by Alva on the mega wave jewel with my own research on mind control. This stone is not for mega evolving or controlling your own pokemon… but doing that to other people’s pokemon!”

“What? No way!” yelped Ash.

Lysandre smiled. “But that is not all, Ash. This current version… it’s just not enough for me. I haven’t yet been able to complete what I’ve really dreamed of inventing. Nothing that I’ve tried so far has worked. Even though my technology on mind control has improved drastically, there has still been something essential missing from it for this concept to work.”

He squeezed his fingers around the jewel and trained his gleaming eyes at Ash. “Because what I really want, Ash, is not only for the force jewel to control mega evolved pokemon, but those pokemons’ trainers as well!”

Dread crashed through Ash. He felt light-headed, and he had to remind himself to breathe. He couldn’t wrap his head around Lysandre’s words. Why would he want that? How would that even…?

Lysandre was clearly expecting an answer from him. Ash’s mind was blank. The only thing he managed to choke out was: “W-why, Lysandre?”

“Don’t you see?” the man boasted. “Some of the most influential people on this planet are pokemon trainers. When I have control over them, I can finally make the rest of the world understand my vision of a better, more beautiful world. The people might not believe _me_ , but surely, they will believe when Champion Diantha is the one saying it. And if they won’t… well, then they didn’t deserve this life anyway.”

He looked down at the jewel resting on his palm and smiled blissfully. “When I figure out how your bond with your greninja works… How that energy is different from normal mega evolution energy… That will be the missing piece for me to gain this ultimate power!”

Suddenly, Ash was seething with anger. “That’s never gonna happen!” he yelled.

“I thought I could practice on your little gym leader friend”, Lysandre carried on. “Clemont, right? But now that you are here… We can get straight to the point. I have everything I need here, ready to go. After I examine the energy you share with your greninja, I can figure out how to use it for the force jewel. And then… Maybe I shall test _that_ on your friend.”

Ash felt his hands shaking. He wanted to punch something. Preferably Lysandre. “Forget it!” he yelled. “I’m not gonna let you hurt Clemont!”

Lysandre gestured to someone behind him. Few seconds later, Morris grabbed Ash’s arm and started dragging him to the side. “Lysandre!” Ash screamed. “You’re never gonna succeed. I won’t let you!”

“Put him on the chair”, Lysandre commanded. “I don’t want him to fall and hurt himself.”

The chair was on the opposite side of the machine. Morris pushed Ash down on it and wrapped a thick belt around his upper body and arms, securing it behind the chairback. Ash pulled against the restraint, teeth bared with effort, but it wouldn’t budge. He looked over at Lysandre.

He was at the control panel, speaking into his radio phone. The pale glow from the cylinder made his face look hollow and malformed.

“Mable. Code zero six. It’s time. Bring in the greninja.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pokemon science is so weird...
> 
> On a side note, I drew a picture of Clemont from chapter 10, where he was dressed in jeans and wearing Ash's hat!
> 
> You can find it on my tumblr, "poke-railou.tumblr.com", tagged "railou draws". I created it (the pic and the tumblr) while procrastinating writing this chapter...
> 
> Anyway, come say hi to me there! Much love!


	16. Together

“What’re you gonna do to me and Greninja?”

Lysandre just hummed in response. He had been ignoring Ash for a while now, and Ash was beginning to get jittery. He swung out his leg and nudged the edge of the cylinder with his foot. He wondered what would happen if he kicked it with all his strength.

“Are you gonna kill us?”

Lysandre stopped typing at the control panel and leveled an annoyed glare at him. “No, Ash”, he sighed. “How many times do I need to… Oh, whatever. I suppose it won’t matter either way. I can see you have already decided that I am an evil man.”

 “You are, though”, replied Ash, raising his eyebrows.

Lysandre’s eyes darkened. Morris lifted his head from where he had been picking his nails and stated, dead pan: “Just say the word, boss, and I’ll make him shut up.”

Lysandre waived his hand and turned back to his work. “It’s alright. He’s just trying to distract me.”

“If you say so”, Morris grumbled. He gave Ash a suspicious look, and Ash made a face in response.

 Lysandre lifted his finger and a lab assistant appeared from the other side of the room. “You can start placing the sensors on him”, instructed Lysandre. “Just begin with the standard set, and we can work on it from there. We got some time to experiment.”

Ash watched as the assistant nodded and picked up his tray of equipment. He was a young guy – couldn’t be much older than Clemont. He walked up to Ash and stood there for a moment, his expression almost hesitant. Ash read the name tag on his coat: Hefe.

He set the tray on a nearby worktable and picked up some antiseptic wipes. His hands were gentle as he brushed the cloth along Ash’s temple. Ash decided to test his luck.

As Hefe leaned closer to wipe the other side of his face, Ash forced eye contact and mouthed: “Please, help me.”

The guy froze, his eyes widening a fraction. He opened his mouth but said nothing. After few seconds, he closed his eyes and turned away, disposing of the wipes. When he turned back, his eyes were colder and he shook his head at Ash, the movement almost impossibly small.

Ash’s heart sank and he turned away, staring into the glowing mass of the cylinder. Hefe worked around him, attaching some sort of sensors all along his hairline and on the pulse points on his neck. When he was done, he turned on his heels and walked quickly back to Lysandre, announcing: “I’m done, sir.”

Lysandre did a cursory glance towards Ash. “Looks fine. You can do the greninja too. Mable should be here shortly with it.”

Ash perked up at the mention of Greninja. He strained his neck, trying to catch a glimpse of the doorway. There were sounds approaching, and Ash saw the doors swinging open and one of the guards walked in, followed by Mable and… Greninja.

“Greninja!” he shouted, and the pokemon paused, its head whipping around towards his voice. When it saw him, it relaxed slightly, and its eyes lit up with relief.

“Ni-greni!” it called back. Ash smiled. It looked much better than the previous day, though still too sallow and thin in his opinion.

“Bring it over here”, ordered Lysandre. Ash’s stomach twisted as he watched Greninja get dragged away from his line of sight, to the opposite side of the cylinder. After few minutes of hassle, they brought it around, and Ash saw it was covered in similar sensors as he was. It was also heavily chained, its arms attached to the band around its midsection.

They locked eyes with each other, and Ash could feel it bubbling under his skin. The bond. The power.

“I’m so sorry about all this, Greninja”, he said to it, not caring about the way everyone was staring at them.

“Ninja, grenin”, it replied with a deep scowl. Refusing his apology. “Gre-greninja.”

Ash chuckled softly. “We are a team, huh? I guess you’re right.” Greninja nodded decisively. Ash smiled. “Yeah. We’re in this together.”

Lysandre didn’t look happy about their conversation. He stepped between them, snapping metal bands around Greninja’s upper arms. Connected to them were thick wires that ran down and along the floor and attached to the main machine.

“Alright, that should do it”, he spoke, stepping back and rubbing his hands together. Greninja twisted around uneasily, looking down at itself. Lysandre addressed his lab team: “We need to make sure those wires stay connected the whole time. One of them is collecting their energy readings, and the other one is an amplifier, so we’ll get a prolonged effect. I need one of you to keep an eye out for their vital signs. We don’t want them to lose consciousness halfway through  – that would slow our process significantly. We can work on the placement of those sensors, but for now they should be able to collect at least some useful data.”

Ash felt his mind filling with white noise as Lysandre spoke. It was only the steadiness of Greninja’s gaze that kept him from having a full-blown panic attack. He clenched his fists, sucking in a breath. They would be _fine_. He would be…

“Right, everyone, back up”, commanded Lysandre. He settled at the control panel and the rest of the lab team retreated further back. “Day one, test number one”, said Lysandre. He leveled an intense look at Ash. “Begin.”

“Alright, Greninja, let’s do this”, Ash said. His voice sounded weak and strangled, and he could barely move a muscle while trapped on the chair, but none of that mattered. He was so in tune with Greninja that earlier, they had managed to do it miles apart. Like this, it was almost too easy.

Greninja closed its eyes, and it tensed, focusing. Ash felt the energy surging from himself, connecting with Greninja’s, and for a fraction of a second, it was perfect.

The something around him flashed brighter than the sun and Ash was struck with something, like electricity, or… It soared through him, sucking out all the air around him.

The lights flickered, someone was screaming (was it him?) and Ash couldn’t see-

Above him, someone roared: “Turn it off!” and suddenly, the world went dark-

Ash blinked rapidly. He was trembling all over, his heart racing uncontrollably. The room was funnily tilted, and he tried to turn his head, only to realize he was halfway lying on the floor, still somehow attached to the chair. His head was pounding, and he grimaced in discomfort. The world swayed in and out of focus. He felt queasy, disoriented.

An indefinite amount of time later, Morris’s disapproving face leaned over him. “What the hell, kid?” he growled. He grabbed hold of Ash’s chair and pulled him up. Ash’s head lolled forward before he got it under control again, his sore neck muscles protesting the movement. He raised his eyes, blinking up at Lysandre, who had appeared in front of him.

The man was rubbing his chin, his eyes narrowed. “Hmm, that was somewhat unexpected. The amplifier might’ve been set on too high.”

He turned back to the control panel, and Ash sought out Greninja. It was picking itself up from the floor, slowly and shakily. It lifted its head and looked at Ash, eyes set. It seemed to say: it could take it. Ash nodded. He could take it, too.

“Test number two”, said Lysandre evenly. “Begin.”

 

* * *

 

Pikachu led Kiawe and Serena through the woods into the overgrown area surrounding the fence. They sneaked around the compound, mindful to check regularly for possible guards in the vicinity.

They paused for a water break next to the steep cliffside, leaning under its shadow for cover. Kiawe drank thirstily, nerves making his throat feel dry and tight. He looked over where Serena was bracing herself against the cliff wall, squeezing her bottle with a faraway look on her face.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked, just to break the tense silence.

Serena glanced at him, smiling mildly. “Heh… Just getting my wits together. I find it always helps me with my nerves if I can have a moment by myself just to focus on what I’m about to do. I always do that when I’m preparing for a performance… Though I guess this is nothing like those times.”

Kiawe could understand that. “So… Are you ready for this?”

“I am”, said Serena quietly. “Because I have to be.”

Her strength surprised him, and he looked at her with newfound respect. It gave him strength too, and the Wela volcano fire inside him burned brighter. He grinned at Serena. “Then I am ready, too.”

While they were talking, Pikachu had crawled farther away from them. Suddenly, it wailed, sad and soft: “Pikapi…”

“What is that?” whispered Serena, squinting towards where Pikachu was.

Kiawe put down his water bottle, trying to spot what they were seeing. “What is what?”

“Look”, said Serena, and sneaked forward. She pushed away some tall grass and went: “Oh.”

Kiawe walked next to her. Pikachu sat on the ground, holding something red… Kiawe’s skin crawled.

“Ash’s hat”, he stated blankly, the realization hitting him hard.

Serena bent down and took the cap from Pikachu. Pikachu cooed sadly but didn’t resist.

“I’m so sorry, Pikachu”, Serena murmured, squeezing the hat in her fingers. “We will get him to safety soon, I promise.”

Kiawe inspected the fence next to them. The grass and bushes around it were clearly trampled on recently, and there was a wide gash in the fence, the chain links and barbed wire cleanly cut through.

“So, this is where you tried to get in the last time”, he whispered, thoughtful. “It is a good spot. Very secluded and there is even a window open just there.”

“Yeah”, agreed Serena. “Let’s make the entrance hole here and wait for Clemont’s signal.” She turned to Pikachu. “Right, Pikachu?”

Pikachu flashed its iron tail. “Pika-pikachu!” it confirmed and with that, it got to work.

 

* * *

 

After the third attempt, Lysandre made everyone take a break.

He paused his program and inspected Ash. The kid was resting limply against the chair, breathing harshly. He had his eyes squeezed shut and there was blood on his face – his nose had started bleeding, Lysandre noticed. It covered his chin and dribbled down from it, staining his shirt.

Lysandre was starting to question his testing methods. The amplifier might’ve been too much, after all.

Ash opened his eyes, and his gaze was glassy and wandering. Eventually he noticed Lysandre and halted, focusing on him. He coughed, licked his lips and grimaced when he tasted blood.

“Did it work?” he slurred, and to Lysandre, it almost sounded like an insult.

“Not yet”, he replied shortly, crossing his arms. He stared Ash down, his mind sorting through all possible explanations for this.

Ash turned his head slowly, blinking and squinting like he was half blind. “Where’s Greninja?” he mumbled, his tone anxious.

Lysandre looked around and spotted the greninja sitting on the floor, head hanging low. Probably hearing its name spoken, it raised its head and looked over at Ash.

“Right there, perfectly okay”, said Lysandre, waving his hand at its direction. Ash focused there and when he saw it, he smiled, big and relieved. The smile looked odd on his ashen, bloodied face. Like it shouldn’t be an honest expression, but despite everything, it was. Lysandre turned away.

_Pathetic._

“Alright, break is over”, he announced, clear and loud to get the attention of his team. “Get back to your positions. We are going to try something different this time.” He spotted the newest intern, hovering around the far side of the lab. He beckoned the kid closer and said to him: “Do something to his nose. I don’t want that blood staining my equipment.”

The kid nodded, but his face paled when he turned towards Ash. Lysandre hoped he wasn’t one of those who passed out at the sight of a few drops blood. The kid picked up a first aid kit and approached Ash. When it seemed like he wasn’t going to faint anytime soon, Lysandre left him to it, returning to the control panel.

He looked through the data they had collected so far. It was quite fascinating to see how in tune Ash was with his greninja right before the evolution began. But after that, something was going wrong.

Even Lysandre, standing couple of meters away, had been able feel the sudden explosion of energy that happened right after the initiation of the evolution. The first time it had blown both Ash and the greninja down on to the floor and switched off and on all the lights and equipment in the room. Those recordings were lost forever. The next two times, with the amplifier on lower settings, had gone marginally better but it was clear the pair wasn’t able to sustain the connection more than a second with that much additional power.

Lysandre wasn’t ready to give up yet, though. He adjusted some of the levels and switched off the amplifier completely. It was time to try a different approach.

“Test number four”, he commanded. “Begin.”

 

* * *

 

Clemont pocketed his screwdriver and looked down at what he had built. The gadgets were far from perfect, but probably best he could do in their current situation.

“Right, I’m done”, he announced, and Lana and Bonnie crowded around him.

“You sure those’re gonna work, big bro?” asked Bonnie. She sounded less skeptical than what he probably deserved.

“I hope so”, he answered slowly. “And if they won’t… At least they will explode and cause havoc.”

“I like your thinking”, said Lana with a wicked smile. “Let’s get closer to the gates and set this up.”

They picked up their packs and Clemont’s inventions and moved as close to the front gates as they dared. Clemont peeked over the rocks they had as cover and checked the guards’ positions. One of them had their pangoro out, the large pokemon patrolling alongside the man.

Clemont’s breath hitched and his hands balled into fists. From the corner of his eye he saw Bonnie kneeling on the ground, speaking quietly to Dedenne. She was telling it that everything was going to be okay, it just needed to stay deep inside her bag and _not come out in any situation_. Clemont ducked, sliding down to sit against the rock. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself, his stomach flipping with anxiety.

“You all right?” asked Lana softly. She sat down cross-legged next to him, her gaze intense.

Clemont nodded tightly. “Yeah. But it just hit me, you know? What we are about to do. And I realized Bonnie shouldn’t be here. I shouldn’t have let her come at all.” He gritted his teeth, the worry and the burden of responsibility over his sister overwhelming him for a moment.

“Maybe so”, said Lana bluntly, but not unkindly. “But it’s too late now anyway. She will never in a million years leave us now, so we just gotta do everything we can to protect her.”

Clemont sighed. “I know.”

They were quiet for a moment, contemplating everything that was about to happen.

“Can you promise me something?” Clemont asked then. He was deadly serious then, and Lana met his gaze steadily. “You will keep her safe, right? Even if I… Even if we get separated or something else happens… You will stay with her?”

“I will”, said Lana solemnly. “I promise.”

Clemont smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Lana.” He stood up again, alerting Bonnie from her thoughts. She grinned, as ready as ever for action.

“It’s go time, big bro?”

Clemont nodded. “It’s go time.”

 

* * *

 

His head was killing him.

After making sure Greninja was okay, Ash leaned back against the chair and closed his eyes again. The lights in the room were making the headache worse, like they were daggers, stabbing straight into his skull. He focused on just breathing – _in and out,_ _in and out_ – to keep the nausea at bay.

He had no idea how much time went past before suddenly someone right next to him said, softly: “Ash?”

He cracked his eyes open and saw the young assistant, (Hefe, his mind helpfully supplied), standing in front of him. He had some tissues and gauze in his hands and a questioning look on his face. Ash nodded minutely, too tired to speak. His eyes slid closed again and he felt Hefe wiping his face with the tissue. Wiping off the blood, he assumed. He had barely noticed he was bleeding, and the only thing he had been able to think about when he saw the blood dripping on his shirt was: _mom’s gonna be so pissed that I ruined this shirt._

Ash jerked out of his thoughts and blinked his eyes open when Hefe stuffed some rolled up gauze up his nostrils. He coughed weakly, tasting blood.

“Try leaning forward a bit. It you lean back like that, the blood will flow down your throat and make you sick”, the man said quietly. Ash eyed him for a moment, puzzled, but eventually did as he was suggested. Hefe stepped away and Ash could hear Lysandre speaking.

“Test number four. Begin.”

Ash breathed in shakily and gritted his teeth together. He didn’t know how much longer he could stand the experiments. He new Greninja was suffering too, but it still raised its head defiantly and prepared for the evolution. Ash prepared too, and they became one once again.

It was different that time.

The evolution went through and… they were fine. Greninja stood up, and it was in full Ash-Greninja form, eyes hard and body tense. Ash felt the energy swirling inside himself, and some of the fatigue was gone, replaced by the kind of sharpness of mind and body that the evolution always brought with it.

“Just like that”, Lysandre said with marvel in his voice. “Look at them. Isn’t it magnificent?”

Ash felt his mind fill with _Greninja_. It was worried, it was _angry,_ and Ash responded with his own, quite identical feelings.

Then, he faced Lysandre and asked, flatly: “Did you get what you wanted, already?”  

Lysandre smiled crookedly. He glanced at the control panel, reading something from it and nodded to himself.

“Oh, I think I did”, he said to Ash. “But now that you’re here, we could try a couple of more things… Test the limits a bit, you now?”

Ash refused to avert his gaze, even though his stomach flipped with dread. He scowled at Lysandre, and Lysandre looked back, his amusement slowly fading into open curiosity.

“Yes, I think I will…” the man muttered, rubbing his chin. He faced the room and said: “Team, great job so far. Let’s-”

He was interrupted by Mable, who had just put down her radio phone and run up to Lysandre, eyes wide.

“Boss!” she exclaimed. “The guards just reported the sound of an explosion near the front gate!”

Lysandre paused and frowned but didn’t look too worried. “Probably just some wild pokemon battling each other. Tell the guards to check it out and report back when they’ve cleared it out.”

Mable nodded sharply and retreated, barking orders into the radio phone.

Lysandre turned back to his lab team. “Alright, as I was saying, the experiments were a success! With this data, I can finally finish my force jewel and have it working as I always imagined it would. That said, I must admit I am terribly curious to find out more about this ‘bond-evolution’ these two have. So, if you don’t mind, I suggest we try a couple of more things right away.”

When no one objected, Lysandre smirked with satisfaction and picked up the remote controller for Greninja’s belt.

Ash breath caught and he turned to Greninja. _Do not_ , he thought desperately. _Do not de-evolve._

Greninja didn’t respond. Its mind was flaming with rage and it stepped forward, like it wanted to put itself between Lysandre and Ash.

“Let’s just begin with this”, said Lysandre languidly, and he pressed the button.

Greninja’s pain was his, and Ash groaned breathlessly, his body going rigid with agony.

“Boss!” screamed Mable, running back towards them. “One of the vans up front just caught fire! We might be under attack!”

Lysandre turned away and Ash could breathe again. His heart leaped when he digested Mable’s words. _My friends_ , he thought with tentative excitement _. They are here!_

“Alert everyone”, commanded Lysandre, more agitated now. “Have a patrol check around the building and get everyone else assemble in the front hall. I’ll be there shortly.”

“Will do, boss”, confirmed Mable, and she sprinted off.

Lysandre turned to Ash, his face unreadable. “You didn’t contact the police, did you?” he asked, though it sounded more like a rhetorical question. “You couldn’t have. No… I would’ve known…”

Ash had no idea what he was talking about, so he kept his mouth shut. He couldn’t risk messing up his friends’ plan.

Instead, he focused on Greninja, sending it a memory from the previous day, when they had been bond evolved far away from each other. Specifically, his recollection of the moment when Greninja had suddenly gained extra power and it had broken out of its cage like it was nothing.

_Wouldn’t it be nice if that happened again, like, right about now?_

The frustrated growl from Greninja was audible. It had tried, Ash knew it had tried, and that knowledge made it even worse. There was still so much they didn’t understand about themselves, so much they couldn’t control. It was excruciating.

“What is the limit, Ash?” asked Lysandre, and he seemed slightly manic now. “How much can you take? You and your Greninja?”

Something behind Lysandre caught Ash’s attention. Smoke, streaming into the room. He squinted his eyes. It was coming from the air vents. The far corner of the lab was already filled with it, the equipment there hidden under a thick haze.

“I just need to know”, the man went on, his thumb caressing the remote controller’s button. His eyes gleamed. “I’m sorry, but I just _need to_ know.”

Ash closed his eyes, preparing for the worst.

And suddenly, everything happened at once.

Lysandre pressed on the button, and searing pain spiked through Ash’s body. Morris yelled: “Boss, watch out!” Someone screamed: “Smoke!” A fire alarm went off, the sound piercing the air. Ash opened his eyes and he saw himself, sitting on the chair, face down and bloodied.

An intense spell of vertigo struck him, and he forced himself away from Greninja’s mind. He lifted his head, back in his own body and now Greninja was in front of him. It was glowing with vibrant blue, and it had somehow gotten its arms free.

“What is going on?” roared Lysandre. He was just a blurry figure to Ash now, the smoke spreading rapidly into the room. “Come out, Pyroar! Morris, get the kid!”

Greninja used cut and smashed Ash’s chair into pieces. Ash crashed to the floor, yelping, but at least he was free to move around. He bent over and dug his fingers into his shoe, ripping out the key fob he had taped to his ankle. With shaking fingers, heart racing, he fiddled with it until he managed to tag the cuffs with it. They popped open, and his hands were finally free.

Greninja grabbed his arm and forcibly pulled him up, dragging him away from the center of the room. Ash stumbled after it, his legs barely holding him, his head spinning.

Eventually, it was too much.

 _Stop stop stop stop_ , he thought frantically. _Greninja, stop, I-_

Greninja was basically carrying him at that point. It went on for a moment longer, before turning a sharp angle and dumping him on the floor behind some worktables. Ash rolled onto his knees, pressing his head down onto his hands and groaning. “What’s happening?” he slurred. He felt like his whole body had suddenly gone into overdrive, the pain in his head spiking.

Greninja placed its hand onto his shoulder, pushing down gently. _Do not fight it_ , it communicated, _just let it happen. It is part of you._

 _What do you mean?_ asked Ash, even though deep down, he knew. It was something that had been hidden within him all this time. Something _he_ had forced down himself, a long time ago. But since the previous day, it had been rising closer to the surface. And now, it was forcing itself out. He looked down at his hands, and they were engulfed in luminous blue.

His Aura.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh?
> 
> Alright, I know what you're thinking. "Railou, we are SIXTEEN chapters in and NOW you bring up Aura?"
> 
> But it's not going to play that big of a part in this story, so even if you don't like it or whatever, how it's used shouldn't be too off putting for you. But Ash is a special dude, and there's a lot going on with him. One of my favorite tropes is his Aura, and I like to think it plays a part in what he can do with Greninja!
> 
> Let me know what you thought of this chapter!


	17. Strong (part 1)

His Aura.

_His Aura?_

Ash blinked, again and again, but the glow wasn’t going away. He looked up, eyes wide. “Greninja…” he muttered. “What do I do?”

 _We need to go_ , sent Greninja, and it grabbed his arm again. It tried to pull him up, but Ash was frozen, too shocked to move.

“I don’t know what to do”, he whispered. “I can’t control it.”

 _Come on!_ growled Greninja desperately. _Ash, please!_

Ash nodded numbly, and he pushed against the floor, slowly and shakily standing up. He turned around… and on the other side of the worktable stood Lysandre.

“Pyroar, use hyper beam!”

It came out of nowhere. Greninja’s back was to Pyroar – it was defenseless. Ash stepped forward. He wasn’t thinking, he just needed to protect Greninja. No matter what. He raised his hands in front of him and walked straight into the hyper beam.

It never connected. The air in front of him exploded with blue energy and the hyper beam bounced away, scorching the far wall. Ash staggered back, overwhelmed.

“What was that?” exclaimed Lysandre. “What did you just do?”

Ash shook his head. “I… I don’t know...”

Greninja rushed past him and settled between him and Lysandre. It was _furious._

“Ninja, greninja”, it growled, low and threatening. Lysandre’s pyroar snarled back, baring its sharp teeth.

Lysandre’s frown deepened. “Use hyper beam, again!”

“Dodge it!” yelped Ash. “Use water shuriken!”

He was not ready for a battle. Not now. Not when he felt like he wasn’t even in control of his _own_ body.

But luckily, Greninja was faring better. It dodged the beam with a flash of movement and attacked the pyroar successfully. It whined in pain, stepping back.

“Fire fang, Pyroar! Grab the greninja and hold it down!”

Shaking off the hurt, the pyroar charged forward, its mouth flaming.

“Don’t let it catch you!” Ash warned. “Stop it with aerial ace!”

Greninja managed to avoid Pyroar’s move and flashed around it, making it look around in confusion. Then, with extreme speed, it slashed at Pyroar. The fire pokemon winced, taking damage.

“Keep using fire fang”, Lysandre ordered. “It’ll keep them focused for a little while longer.”

It was a weird thing to say, but Ash didn’t have time to analyze it. Pyroar was going for it, and Greninja was only barely able to keep away from its fangs.

“Use double team to distract it!” Ash instructed, but they weren’t fast enough. Pyroar caught Greninja and drove its teeth into its arm. Greninja and Ash both yelped in pain. Greninja tried its best to shake it off, but it was holding on tight.

“Greninja-!” Ash began, but suddenly he was grabbed from behind, thick arms wrapping around his body, lifting him up.

“Don’t even try anythin’”, Morris growled into his ear.

“Let me go!” Ash yelled. He fought against the man’s hold, kicking his shins, though it was useless. Greninja got distracted from its battle, noticing Ash’s struggle, and the pyroar had a chance to bit down even deeper. Pain exploded in his arm and Ash groaned. His eyes watered and it became even harder to focus.

“Now, let’s just all calm down for a moment”, said Lysandre, though he was clearly struggling to stay collected himself. “Tell me Ash, what just happened?”

The room was filled with smoke and the fire alarm was still blaring. Ash shook his head, overwhelmed. It was too much. Everything was too much. His head buzzed. He couldn’t-

“Let me go”, he wheezed, struggling weakly. He squeezed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth. “Let me GO!”

It was instant. Morris’s arms slackened, releasing him. Ash’s feet hit the ground, and he stumbled forward. His eyes flew open in shock. He looked back, and Morris was standing deathly still, his mouth hanging open. He was glowing faintly blue, and Ash didn’t need to look down to know that he was, too.

Lysandre stepped forward, his eyes wide with wonder. Even the pokemon had stopped fighting, both too surprised to keep going.

“Is that… your Aura?” Lysandre asked, astounded. He advanced on Ash slowly, cautiously.

Ash stepped back. “Stay away from me”, he said, his voice shaking. “I mean it!”

“Alright”, said Lysandre, raising his hands placatingly.  “But just listen to me-”

“No”, Ash interrupted, backing off some more. He glanced at Greninja, and the pokemon rose and walked up to him. “We are leaving.”

“Go ahead, then”, Lysandre sneered. “But you will never get your precious pokemon back.”

Ash froze, and his focus faltered. The Aura energy faded, and Morris was released. The man slumped down, slack and disoriented.

“Where have you taken them?” Ash demanded, terrified now.

“They are safe – for now. And if you come with me”, said Lysandre with a twisted smile. “They will stay safe.”

 _He is bluffing_ , sent Greninja. It stepped in front of Ash, trying to get his attention. _We need to go, now!_

Ash swallowed. Lycanroc, Litten, Rowlet… He couldn’t mess this up. If Lysandre was telling the truth… If he had his pokemon somewhere where he couldn’t reach them…

But Greninja was demanding them to go, and Ash did trust its instincts. He trusted Greninja with his life… and beyond. With the life of his other pokemon, too.

It was decided. “I’m not coming with you”, he told Lysandre, a newfound vigor in his voice. “But I _will_ get my pokemon back, no matter what.”

Now that he had calmed down slightly, he was staring to recognize and sense the Auras in the room. They surrounded him, pressing gently against his senses. Greninja’s; strong and safe and feeling like home. Lysandre’s; big and powerful and full of hatred. Morris’s, still struggling to recover. Hefe’s and the rest of the lab staff’s; scared, confused, compliant.

And his own; unruly like a wildfire, just barely being held back.

“Well, then”, snarled Lysandre, raising up to his full height. His pyroar leaned forward, tense and growling. “I guess I will just have to stop you with force.”

“You can try”, replied Ash, and he glanced down at his hands, feeling the energy there, bubbling just under his skin. He had no idea how to control his Aura, but in this situation, that might just work out for his advantage.

“Pyroar, incinerate!” shouted Lysandre.

“Block it with cut, Greninja!” countered Ash, and the moves clashed with a blinding light show. Ash focused on Greninja, feeling the energy between them. He realized then; it was the same energy as before, the one he always felt when they were bond evolved, but now it was even stronger. An idea came to him and he clenched his fists, taking a wider stance.

He remembered how he had channeled his Aura energy into Mew, all that time ago. If he did that for Greninja…

“Use hyper beam, Pyroar!”

“Water shuriken, Greninja”, shouted Ash, and suddenly, the energy _streamed_ from him. It enveloped Greninja, and he felt the pokemon grow even more powerful, its form radiating with blue flames. It threw the shuriken from its back, and it was bigger than ever, easily cutting through Pyroar’s attack. It hit its target, and the fire pokemon was thrown back, smashing into the floor hard and sliding across it, completely out cold.

“Pyroar!” Lysandre shouted, and his face twisted with shock. He stared at Ash, and Ash could recognize an emotion there that he had never seen the man show before.

Fear.

Ash turned away. “That was amazing, Greninja”, he slurred with an exhausted grin, and the floor tilted under him. Greninja caught his arms, and he leaned into its hold, lightheaded.

 _Now, we go_ , sent Greninja, and it tugged on his arm. Ash could only nod, and Greninja pulled him after it. They ran through the swinging doors and into the hallway beyond. The rest of the lab staff had clearly fled already, but that worked well for Ash and Greninja. They sprinted across the empty hall, rounded a corner and ended up at the bottom of a big stairwell.

Greninja started up, but Ash halted, forcing it to stop, too. “Wait a second”, he wheezed, leaning his hands against his knees, breathing hard. He coughed wetly into his hand, and when he looked at his palm, it was red with blood. “Oh man…”

 _Can you go on?_ Greninja asked with concern. _Maybe I could carry you…_

“No, no”, Ash said quickly, shaking his head. He stood up straighter and aimed for a reassuring smile. “I’m fine! Let’s just go.”

Greninja didn’t look too reassured, but with a final sharp look at him it took the lead again, and they began their long climb up the stairs.

 

* * *

 

 

In the end, his invention worked… okay.

What it was supposed to do was send out trackers – tiny, bug-like flying gadgets – that would search out Ash and send his location back to Clemont. (“I call it ‘ _The Flying Search Machine_!’” – “Wow, big bro, that’s inspiring.”) He sent out five trackers, and he sat down with Lana and Bonnie and hoped for the best.

Clemont followed their movement on the screen of the power source he had built. All the trackers had flown in different directions. One of them was happily sailing over the mountains, so that could be forgotten. One of them had somehow found its way into one of the vans in the yard and was now stuck buzzing inside it. The rest were bouncing along the building walls, attempting to find a way in.

Bonnie snickered. Lana leaned over his shoulder, raising her eyebrows.

"I mean, it's not perfect", said Clemont defensively. Lana raised her hands.

"I didn't say anything."

The machine beeped and Clemont looked at the readings. He perked up, leaning forward.

“One got in!” he exclaimed. They crowded around the screen. The leading tracker was descending rapidly into the ground, down and down, and Clemont’s eyes widened. “That is at least six or seven floors down”, he whispered, shocked.

“Maybe it just got lost”, said Bonnie hopefully.

“No…” Clemont muttered. The machine started beeping louder and faster, and Clemont gasped. “It found him! It found Ash!”

And then the machine blew up in their faces.

Coughing, they backed off, wiping soot from their eyes. “Awesome”, grumbled Bonnie, as Clemont pouted and picked up some of the crumbled pieces.

Lana shook her head like a wet dog would, and dust billowed around her. She raised her head, grimacing. “So uh… what happens to the trackers now?” she asked.

Clemont shrugged helplessly. “The one that found Ash should let out a smoke signal, but I don’t know how useful that is in this case, as he is so deep underground. The rest will… Well, they’ll probably explode.”

“Great”, began Bonnie, but suddenly she froze. Clemont saw her eyes widen in fear and he spun around, ready to protect her.

Two guards and the pangoro were rapidly approaching their hiding place. “They must’ve heard us”, Clemont whispered. He glanced at Lana, and the girl nodded. She tensed, head held high, and they prepared for a battle.

The guards were just mere meters away from them when they heard an explosion from the yard. The guards turned around, gasped loudly, and started running back to the compound, yelling.

“What was that?” Lana hissed. She peeked over the rocks and went: “Oh, that van is on fire now.”

“Well”, shrugged Clemont. “That works as a distraction too, I guess.”

“Yeah. That’s two explosions already. They should be shitting their pants right about now”, smirked Lana. “Did you say you had some stun bombs too, Clemont? Those might come handy later.”

Clemont nodded. “Yup. Let’s hope Lysandre takes the bait. If he leaves Ash alone and comes to battle us, Kiawe and Serena can get to Ash much more easily.“

“Let’s hope so, yeah”, agreed Lana.

“Let’s hope what?” asked someone right next to them. The kids jumped up, backing away in shock. Clemont’s heart skipped, his pulse skyrocketing. He looked at the guard, who was standing there with his seviper, smirking at them.

“You kids chose the wrong place to play around.”

Lana took a stance, throwing her poke ball. “Popplio, come out! It’s time to mow down some bad guys.”

Clemont followed suit. He sent out Bunnelby and Luxray, both of whom seemed more than happy to get in on the action. Bonnie retreated behind them, hugging the bag with Dedenne in it against her chest.

“We aren’t playing”, said Clemont. “Luxray, discharge!”

“Bubble beam, Popplio!”

“What the hell? Seviper, poison fang!” the man yelled, taking a startled step back.

 Luxray and Popplio’s attacks were effective, and Seviper groaned in pain. The guard took out his radio phone and exclaimed: “I need assistance at the front gates! Quickly!”

Clemont and Lana glanced at each other. “You ready to fight, Lana?” asked Clemont.

Lana smiled slyly. “Always.”

 

* * *

 

 

For a while, Lysandre just stared at the empty doorway where Ash and his greninja had disappeared, before turning on his heels and recalling his fainted pyroar.

“Boss?” asked Morris, finally standing up and bracing himself against the worktable, still looking quite shaky. “What the hell _is_ that kid?”

“I’m not sure”, he answered slowly, a new plan already forming in his head. “But I will find out.”

The smoke was dispersing, revealing the chaos the lab had become. Expensive lab equipment was all over the floor, tables and chairs turned, machines beeping. His lab team – or those of them who had stuck around – were covering against the far wall, faces sheet-white. Lysandre scoffed. _Sheep._

He addressed them: “Clean up this mess. I’m not yet done for today.”

The staff scurried to obey him. Morris, instead, was still scowling at him. “But Ash just escaped, boss! Shouldn’t we be goin’ after him?”

Lysandre rolled his eyes, annoyed. He had no patience nor time for idiots now. “He didn’t escape. He’s still in the building. And he is going to come back down here willingly, I can promise you that.”

Morris gave him the most incredulous side-eye at that, but Lysandre ignored him and picked up his radio phone.

“Mable? What’s the situation up there?”

 _“It’s a mess, sir!”_ her tinny voice answered hurriedly.  “ _At first we thought it was just some local kids playing around, but they have actual bombs with them! They are putting up a real fight! They must be here for Ash.”_

“Well, just keep them busy and don’t let anyone get into the building”, snapped Lysandre. “Put Celosia on it. I need you to go pick up Ash’s poke balls – quickly! He’s on his way there.”

 _“Wait, what’s going on?”_ exclaimed Mable. _“You let the kid go?”_

Lysandre sneered nastily, despite the fact she couldn’t see him. “I didn’t _let_ him go. I think I accidentally activated his Aura. He _got_ away.”

 _“You – you did what?”_ Mable screeched, so loudly that Lysandre had to pull the radio phone farther away from his face.

“I think”, repeated Lysandre through gritted teeth, “that my experiments might’ve activated his latent Aura powers. But I don’t have time to explain the details right now! Just do as I tell you and go stop him before he gets his pokemon back.”

 _“Sir”,_ replied Mable, more controlled now.

“His powers are unstable, so you need to approach him carefully. But when you find him, tell him this…”

 

* * *

 

 

They made a good team with Clemont, Lana noticed.

With her water type attacks and his electric ones, and his experience in battling, they didn’t have too much trouble holding off the few guards that first came to fight them.

But soon it was five goons running towards them, then ten. Clemont threw his stun bombs at them, taking few of them out for the count. Still, they were quickly starting to get overwhelmed.

That was before they heard someone scream: “Watch out, a charizard!”

Lana looked up, squinting at the sky. And true enough, something flew over the building, spitting fire on the goons. It was a charizard, and there were two people riding on it.

“So cool! Who are they?” she asked in admiration.

Bonnie cheered, jumping up and down and waving her hands. “Alain!” she cried out. “Down here!”

Clemont’s eyes widened. “Alain?”

The charizard curved down, landing close to them with a loud thump. Alain and Officer Jenny jumped down from its back, running up to them.

“Sorry it took us this long to get here”, Alain said hurriedly.

“We didn’t even know you were coming!” Clemont replied, still stunned.

“Well, of course we were”, he huffed. He gazed at the goons regrouping on the yard. “And seems like you need our help. You seen Ash yet?”

“No, not yet”, said Lana. “But Serena and Kiawe should be inside by now. We got really swarmed by those guys”, she added, pointing at the grunts.

“Alright”, Alain nodded. “I brought my friend Jenny to help. Rest of the police force is coming too, but it will take them longer to reach this place with their cars and bikes.”

“Hey guys”, Jenny said with a small wave. She was dressed in her full Officer outfit. “I would also like to apologize for letting you kids down. Mine and many other’s trust in the Kalosian police force has been greatly impacted by this disaster. But my colleagues and I are willing to do all we can to help.”  She brushed back her wavy green hair, looking ready to kick some ass. Lana grinned. She liked her already.

“Thank you so much, Alain and Officer Jenny!” Clemont said. “You really will be a big help to us.”

Jenny released her manectric and nodded sharply. “Most important thing now is that we get all of your friends to safety, and Lysandre and his team behind bars for good.”

Bonnie's eyes widened.

“Hey, now that there’s more of us, one could go help Serena and Kiawe!” she exclaimed. She raised her arm, showing a thin band around her wrist. “You gave all of us these trackers so we could find each other more easily, right, big bro? I think we should use that now.”

“That’s true, Bonnie”, said Clemont, pursing his lips thoughtfully. “Serena and Kiawe might need help, and we can quite easily locate them with these. But who-”

“I can go”, said Lana instantly. Everyone turned to gape at her, surprised.

“Are you sure?” Alain asked, his brow lowering in concern.

“Yup!” Lana confirmed, nodding vigorously. “I’m a fast runner. I can get past those goons no problem.”

 “Well, if you’re sure”, said Clemont slowly. He and Bonnie looked at her with big eyes, worried. They were about to say goodbye to yet another friend. “We haven’t seen Lysandre yet, so just be really careful, alright?”

“Yeah, I will”, Lana promised solemnly. She recalled Popplio, pressing its ball against her chest for a moment. She closed her eyes and smiled. “We are gonna be just fine.”

She looked up, determination in her eyes. “You take care too, right guys? I will see you soon.”

And with that, she sprinted straight towards the lair of the devil.


	18. Strong (part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww yeah this is a beast of a chapter!
> 
> I will give this one a content warning, just to be sure. If you are sensitive or have specific triggers, check the end notes and/or use Ctrl + F to search for the trigger word. It's not graphic, but I don't want you to feel bad.

When they finally reached floor -4, Ash felt them for the first time.

“Wait, Greninja”, he gasped, completely winded. He leaned against the wall, closed his eyes and focused. He reached out his Aura through the walls and found the familiar energy of his poke balls. When he opened his eyes, Greninja was looming over him, watching him closely. Ash smiled. “Just one more floor up”, he whispered.

 _Are you sure?_ asked Greninja.

 _Yeah, I feel them. They’re so close,_ Ash sent. He pushed away from the wall and grabbed the railing for support. He looked up the stairs. Just one more floor…

He started up, his breath wheezing in his lungs, his legs feeling like lead. An intense wave of concern wafted from Greninja, and it grabbed his arm, taking most of his weight. Ash didn’t have it in him to argue, so he let Greninja help him up the final stairwell.

They reached floor -3 in quiet effort. He peeked into the empty hallway, and it luckily seemed that every staff member had ran up to the ground level to regroup and defend against his friends’ attack. Instinct leading him, Ash walked down the corridor and up to a closed, thick metal door. He put his hand against it, and he knew. “In here”, he whispered.

Greninja nodded. Nothing happened for a frozen moment, when Ash just stared at the locked door and Greninja hovered behind him. Then, it said out loud: “Gre?” and sent him a memory of him using something to open his shackled hands back down in the lab.

Ash’s eyes widened. The key fob…! He had been so confused then, that he had no memory of where he had put it after. He patted down the pockets of his trousers and with great relief, he found it in the right one.

“Oh man”, he huffed. “Thanks, Greninja.”

He pressed the chip against the electrical lock and after a low buzz, the door clicked open. Ash rushed in, Greninja close on his heels, and found himself in a small storage room. He headed straight for the three poke balls on the shelf and took them in his hands. They were all full, thank the gods, and he said to them: “I’m here, guys! Don’t be alarmed, but we are still in trouble, so you need to stay quiet. I’m gonna let you out now.”

He released all of them. Lycanroc, Litten and Rowlet came out, looking around in clear confusion and agitation. Ash fell onto his knees and opened his arms. The three young pokemon cooed happily and ran into his embrace, smothering him with kisses and rubs. Ash giggled, trying his best to pet them all simultaneously.

“I missed you guys so much”, he mumbled into Lycanroc’s fur. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”

Litten pushed against his leg, meowing softly. Rowlet flew onto his shoulder and leaned against his cheek while Lycanroc stepped back and looked him up and down with affection.

From behind him, Greninja let out a sound, and everyone turned to look at it. Greninja nodded its greeting, and the group responded, tails wagging and eyes wide with wonder.

Ash grinned. “That’s right, I found Greninja! Man, you will never believe what just happened to us, it was wild! We almost…” He trailed off, biting his lip. A distant clanging sound emanated from the hallway, and everyone jumped to attention.

“Yeah”, Ash said, and stood up wearily. “We are still trapped in Lysandre’s place. We can’t let our guards down.”

Someone was running down the hallway towards them. Ash took a deep breath, steeling himself. He looked down at his Alolan team, smiling thinly. “Lycanroc, will you help us?”

“Lyca!” it barked keenly.

“Thanks! Litten and Rowlet, I’m sorry but you gotta go back into your balls. But don’t worry, I promise I will never let anyone take you away from me again. Okay?”

The two pokemon agreed reluctantly, and Ash called them back. “Let’s go”, he said to Greninja and Lycanroc, and they stepped back into the hallway.

“Ah, damnit!” someone yelled, and Ash whipped his head around. Two grunts, Mable and her weavile stood in the end of the hallway, breathing hard and staring at them in frustration.

“You got here fast”, she snarled, slowly walking closer, the grunts following her. “How did you get into that room?”

“Give it up, Mable”, Ash responded angrily. “I’m leaving, and I’m not gonna let you stop me.”

“Not so fast, kid”, she sneered. There was something in her eyes that made Ash’s stomach twist with dread. “You see, the boss’s got a message for you…”

 

* * *

 

When they heard the increasing amount of explosion sounds, Serena and Kiawe knew it was their time to act.

With Pikachu leading the way, they sneaked into the building through the open window in the back. They ended up in a small office room, and they looked at each other with equal amounts of excitement and fright. Serena could feel her heart racing wildly and she sucked in a shaky breath, trying to calm herself down.

Pikachu crawled around the corner, checking the way for them. The hallway was empty for now, so they ran quietly along it, ducking into the stairwell to regroup. They stared down the stairway and saw it twisting down and down, going deep into the ground.

“Ash must be held at least one floor down, don’t you think?” Kiawe whispered. “Let’s start there.”

They descended the stairs and checked the corridors on that floor, trying to spot any indication that Ash might be close. Then they went down another floor and checked that too, but when that turned out fruitless, Serena’s chest was starting to tighten with anxiety, and she glanced at Kiawe.

“This place is so much bigger than I thought!” she uttered desperately. “How can we ever find him here?”

Kiawe frowned, shrugging helplessly. “We just have to look around until we do.”

“Pikaa…” The pokemon was listening intently, ears pointed and nose in the air. It looked up at Serena and Kiawe and shook its head. It sprinted down the hallway, back to the stairwell.

Serena shared a look with Kiawe. “You think it sensed him?”

They rushed after Pikachu, down the stairs and into another set of hallways. But his time, they heard voices from close by. They rounded a corner and stopped in their tracks, their shoes squeaking against the laminated floor. Serena’s heart skipped a beat and she slapped a hand against her mouth.

_It was Ash and Greninja!_

They were facing off Mable and two grunts, their backs to Serena and Kiawe. Mable was saying:  “The boss’s got a message for you-” but she paused when she spotted them, hovering at the end of the hallway.

“What?” she screeched. “Where did _you_ little shits come from?”

Ash spun around, his eyes wide. “Serena?” he gasped. “Kiawe? Pikachu!”

“Pikapi!” Pikachu cried out, and it sprinted off, leaping into Ash’s arms. Alarmed, Serena noticed how the boy stumbled backwards with the light impact, and Greninja had to grab his arm to help him keep his balance. She and Kiawe started running towards him too, but Ash raised the hand that wasn’t holding Pikachu and shook his head.

“Guys, wait”, he said tightly. To Serena’s horror, he then turned his back to them and asked Mable: “What did Lysandre say?”

Mable smirked. “Oh, you’re going to love this. I’m sure your pokemon friend can show you the details, but to sum it up… There is a group of greninja contained in a lab downstairs, one floor up from the main lab. We were testing the force jewel prototypes on them but, well, they weren’t that helpful. Lysandre wants you to know that he’s going to kill one of the greninja every five minutes you are not back down there with him.”

Serena had a hard time understanding what the woman was talking about, but Ash looked absolutely frozen with fear. He looked at Greninja, and the pokemon nodded quietly.

“Don’t listen to her”, Kiawe angrily called. “She must be bluffing just to get to you!”

Ash glanced back at them, his face so pale and drawn that Serena felt his stomach twist even tighter with concern. “She’s not bluffing”, he replied softly.

“I’m not bluffing”, Mable said smugly. “So kid, chop chop, you better hurry up. Lysandre’s waiting.”

Ash glanced back and forth from her to Serena and Kiawe, worrying his lip. Greninja and Lycanroc were watching him, their bodies tense and alert. Pikachu was wrapped tightly around his shoulders, its ears down and gaze hard. Serena pressed her hand against her throat, eyes burning.

“Don’t do it, Ash”, she whispered. “Don’t go, please? Stay with us.”

Ash swallowed, his lips pressing into a tight line. “I have to. I’m sorry”, he murmured then. He nodded at Greninja and Lycanroc, and they edged around Serena and Kiawe’s shock-still forms. With a final yearning look back at their friends, they sprinted off.

“No!” Serena screamed, starting after him. “Ash!”

“Shut it, girl”, Mable sneered. “And stay still. You two aren’t going anywhere.”

“Watch out, Serena”, Kiawe warned, touching her arm sharply. Serena turned around and noticed Mable had called out her houndoom next to her weavile. The grunts had released their pokemon too – two houndoom more. Kiawe threw his poke balls, saying: “Come out, Marowak and Turtonator!”

Serena set her jaw, steeling herself. She couldn’t leave Kiawe, not like this, even though she wanted nothing more than to run after Ash. She took out her poke balls too, letting out Braixen and Sylveon.

They were about to call their first attacks, when Mable’s eyes widened again, and she screeched: “Another of you little shits?!”

Serena and Kiawe looked back and to their great surprise, saw Lana standing at the end of the hallway. “Hi guys”, she panted breathlessly. “I thought I heard you!”

“Lana!” exclaimed Kiawe. “You need to go after Ash! He just ran off!”

Lana stepped back, startled. “You saw Ash?”

“Yeah, but he’s on his way downstairs to face off Lysandre”, Serena spoke quickly. “Please, Lana, hurry!”

Lana nodded blankly, backing up before turning on her heels and dashing off back to where she came from.

“No, damnit!” swore Mable furiously. “You are ruining everything!”

“I’m glad to hear that”, Kiawe said, his eyes burning with righteous fury. “Serena, let’s teach these guys a lesson.”

Serena smiled humorlessly. “With pleasure, Kiawe.”

 

* * *

 

Ash raced down the stairs two steps at a time.

He skidded to a stop at -6, sharing a look with Greninja. “She said one floor up from the main lab, right?” he asked hoarsely, before doubling over to cough, his whole body rattling with it. Pikachu cooed in concern and leaned forward to look at him, its fur brushing against his cheek. Ash glanced at it, giving it a small smile.

“Gre”, Greninja confirmed. It took the lead and walked them and Lycanroc through the hallways to a set of closed metal doors. Ash fished out the key fob.

“Get ready guys”, he whispered, and buzzed the door open. He pushed in and looked around.

Lysandre wasn’t there.

Ash blinked. The room was massive, white and clinical, and the back corner was filled with cages. There was at least a dozen greninja locked up in the lab. The sight was as horrifying as it had been when Greninja had showed him its memories, but it was still a shock to see it in reality. Ash sprinted to the closest cage. A greninja was laying on the floor, blinking up at him fearfully. It forced itself to sit up, scooting backwards to cover against the far wall. It whined softly.

“Hey, don’t be scared”, said Ash, his stomach dropping at the sight. “We are here to help!”

“Greninja gre – greni!” added Greninja.

The rest of the greninja in the room were also rousing, some looking frightened and some angry. One of the biggest ones stood up in its cage, grabbing the bars and growling. Ash swallowed, looking around.

“I’m not here to hurt you”, he went on cautiously. He walked around the room, buzzing open the cage doors. Greninja gave him a sharp look, and it warned him to stay alert – these were wild pokemon that had been tortured by a man for days, if not weeks. Ash brushed it off, carrying on his mission. “I’m letting you free now”, he said, “but I hope you will let someone check you and heal you up before you go back to your homes.”

He walked up to the final cage, where the large greninja was standing and staring him down angrily.

“Pikapi…” said Pikachu under its breath, agitated. Its nails dug into Ash’s shoulder, its cheeks sparkling.

“You will lead everyone to safety, right?” Ash asked the greninja. Then, he unlocked the door.

The greninja shot out, tackling him down with formidable strength. Pikachu was thrown off his shoulder with a startled cry and his back hit the floor hard. The wind was knocked out of him, stars bursting in his eyes.

He coughed and fought for air desperately and stared up at the furious greninja. It was looming over him, its cut activated and pointed at his throat. Lycanroc was barking, and from the corner of his eye he saw his pokemon readying their attacks. “No, guys!” he wheezed frantically. “Don’t attack it!”

The rest of the greninja had surrounded them, their Auras radiating fear and anger and confusion.

Ash froze, thinking: _their Auras!_ He closed his eyes, focusing on that. He reached out, not really knowing what he was doing but the letting his instincts take the lead. He let his deepest, strongest feelings spill out and find the greninja. For a moment, their emotions overwhelmed him, but slowly the anger turned into something less burning, and the fear into something closer to curiosity.

 _I want to help_ , Ash sent, desperation leaking into his thoughts, _please, let me help you._

Suddenly he realized how quiet it was around him, and he opened his eyes. The greninja was still standing over him, but it wasn’t threatening him anymore. Its eyes were wide and thoughtful as it gazed down at him. Pikachu was crouched down on his stomach, and Ash brushed a hand through its fur, gently telling it to move aside, before hauling himself to sit up.

“Oh man”, coughed Ash faintly, rubbing a new sore spot at the back of his head. He grinned up at the greninja. “Wow, you’re really strong! I didn’t mean to scare you guys…” His grin fell, and he looked down. “I’m really sorry what happened to you. Lysandre is so awful, and he shouldn’t be allowed to do these things...”

“Greni”, said the greninja softly and Ash glanced up. It was holding out its hand for him, waiting. Ash smiled, took the offered help, and the greninja pulled him up.

“Thanks!” Ash said and stepped back. His knees wobbled and he wavered on place, until his Greninja appeared next to him and took his elbow.

 _Thank you_ , he sent. Greninja nodded shortly and Ash noticed how suspiciously it was still looking at the wild greninja, hovering slightly between him and them. The greninja had gathered into a group behind the leading one, but Ash could no longer sense any malicious intent from any of them.

Ash nodded at the leading greninja, and it nodded back.

For now, they were at a truce.

 

Then, an intercom crackled, and Lysandre’s languid voice filled the room: “Very impressive, Ash. For a moment there I was sure you were going to get stabbed.”

Ash whipped his head around, looking everywhere. His pokemon gathered tighter around him and the wild greninja stepped back, closer to its kind.

“Show yourself!” shouted Ash, way too tired to play any games. “Lysandre!”

A black glass wall faded to clear next to them and revealed Lysandre standing there with a crocked smile, observing them.

“Hello”, he smirked. “I was going to interrupt you sooner, but that was quite interesting. I didn’t know you have the ability to control big groups of pokemon like this.”

Ash frowned. “I’m not controlling them”, he said, miffed by the very idea. “They just realized I’m on their side, so there’s no reason for them to hurt me.”

Lysandre shrugged, waving his hand. “Either way. I’m glad you followed my instructions and came back down here. Now, let’s get rid of the extra weight.”

Ash didn’t have time to ask what he meant, when Lysandre leaned down to press something and suddenly a shock ran through the wild greninja and all of them fell unconscious at once. Ash watched them collapsing one by one, crashing into the floor and staying down. Lycanroc dashed to the closest one, whining and pushing on its shoulder, but it gave no reaction.

Fear was making it difficult to breathe, and Ash turned back to Lysandre. “What did you do?” he whispered, horrified.

“Don’t worry, they are just sleeping”, stated Lysandre. “Oh, you didn’t honestly think I would allow you to just waltz in here like that and let them free?”

Ash gritted his teeth, his hands balling into fists. “Why are you doing this? What do you still want from us?”

“There is a lot I want, Ash”, the man answered. “The abilities you possess… I have come to realize how much more hidden power there is in you than I ever imagined.”

Ash swallowed, not knowing what to say.

Lysandre tilted his head, pursing his lips. “How long have you known about your Aura? Not for long, I assume?”

“I did know about it…” replied Ash slowly, resigned. “I have known for a long time, actually. But I chose to ignore it. I didn’t want to have it – I didn’t want that responsibility and that power over others. I just wanted to be a… a normal pokemon trainer.” He sighed wearily. “But… I guess it’s part of me, whether I wanted it or not.”

“Pikapi…” murmured Pikachu. Greninja stepped towards Lysandre, anger radiating from every bit of its form.

 “I will never understand you”, said Lysandre. “How can you _not_ want that?”

He began moving, disappearing from Ash’s view for a second. Soon a door opened next to the glass wall and Lysandre walked through, into the lab. He looked Ash up and down, and Ash fought hard to keep his stance and not take a step back.

“I have an offer for you”, Lysandre began. “Well, it’s more like a choice for you to make.”

Ash refused to look away, his heart racing and hands shaking. He nodded cautiously.

“You will come down to the main lab with me, and let me take control of you and your greninja with the force jewel-“

“No way!” yelled Ash, stumbling backwards, completely appalled.

“Or”, stressed Lysandre with a thin smile, “I will turn a switch and this whole building goes down in a massive explosion.”

Ash clicked his mouth shut, blinking. “…What?”

“I think you heard me”, Lysandre sneered. “That machine down there… I don’t know exactly how big it would blow up, but I’m willing to bet it would dust at least half of the floors above it. It’s filled with mega evolution energy and your Aura energy… Yes, it is a bomb for sure.”

Ash shook his head, feeling faint. “But… why?”

Lysandre shrugged. “This might sound a bit grim, Ash, but I honestly don’t have much to lose. I was already prepared to go down during the battle near Anistar City. But when I somehow survived… I had lost everything. Everything I had worked towards for years, just gone. Many of those who claimed to share my vision turned their backs to me. I don’t have much left, anymore.”

“Lysandre…” said Ash warily. “You can still figure out new things you want to achieve. There is so much good in this world left for you. Destroying it isn’t the only option.”

“If you really believe that, you are even more naïve than I thought”, scoffed Lysandre. “I’m way beyond that point, Ash. If this place really is being raided, there is no way I’m letting myself get arrested.”

His eyes gleamed madly in the bright lights of the room. “I’m either getting out of here together with you, or we, and hopefully most of your little friends up there, are all dying here, right now.”

“You are insane”, whispered Ash, but Lysandre just tilted his chin and smiled. “I can’t let that happen. I can’t let you kill my friends and all the other people and pokemon here. That’s just not possible!”

“Then you know what to do”, began Lysandre, but they were suddenly interrupted by a loud clang.

 

Someone had just run through the metal doors of the lab.

And that someone was Lana.

 

“Finally, I found you!” she cried out, before stopping on her tracks.

Ash stared at her, horrified. She stared back, panting with exertion, eyes wide.

“Ash”, she started, glancing at Lysandre. “What is going on?”

Lysandre looked surprised for a second, before his face fell into a scowl. “And who is this little brat? Tell her to leave now, Ash, or she can be the first to die.”

“Lana”, Ash begged. “You need to go. Please! It’s too dangerous here!”

Lana shook her head, aggrieved. “No way, Ash. That clown of a man is going down right now, and I’m here to help you do it.”

“Clown of a…” muttered Lysandre. He pulled up to his full height, staring down at Lana with seething fury. “I changed my mind. She can die right this moment.”

He threw his poke ball, and Ash had a fraction of a second to realize what was about to happen.

“Lana!” he screamed, but Lysandre’s shiny gyarados had already been released. It instantly launched its hyper beam, aiming it straight at Lana. Luckily, Greninja was on the same wavelength with him, and he didn’t need to say anything before it had thrown its water shuriken to block Gyarados’s attack.

The moves hit each other with a loud crash, and even though they hadn’t reached Lana, the collision energy threw her off her feet and down onto the floor.

She let out a soft groan, rolling onto her side, her eyes squeezed shut.

“Lana!” Ash exclaimed. He ran up to her with Greninja, Pikachu and Lycanroc close on his heels, and fell onto his knees next to her. She was slowly sitting up, rubbing her arm and scowling.

“I’m okay”, she gritted out. “Though now I’m mad.”

They looked up at Lysandre and froze. He and Gyarados were glowing, energy streaming between them. “Gyarados, mega evolve!” Lysandre bellowed.

Lana grabbed his shoulder, drawing Ash’s attention back to her. She spoke quickly: “I have something for you. I got this idea… Dunno if it’s gonna work, but if it does…”

“What is it?”

Lana fished something out of her pocket and when she opened her hand, there was something small and blue on her palm, glimmering in the light.

Ash’s eyes widened. “Your Waterium Z? Lana…!”

It acutely reminded him how he hadn’t yet found his own Z-crystals that Lysandre had taken from him.

“Can you use it with Greninja?” she asked, still holding it out to him. Ash took it carefully between his fingers and looked from it back to Lana. He grinned at her, and she smirked back.

“I’m gonna try.”

He stood up and pulled Lana up after him. Lysandre had finished the evolution, and he was staring at them with a borderline insane look.

“You are going to regret going against me, children”, he snarled.

“Bring it on”, said Ash.

He wrapped his fingers tightly around the crystal and glanced at his pokemon.

“Lycanroc, stay with Lana. Keep her safe.” It nodded grimly, grouching beside Lana. Ash smiled. “Pikachu and Greninja, let’s go.”

They stepped forward, drawing Lysandre’s attention to them. He heard Lana bringing out Popplio behind him, but for his relief she stayed back. Lysandre glared at him.

“If I win against you”, he began, “you will give yourself to me.”

“If you let my friends leave first”, returned Ash.

Lysandre smiled. “Deal.”

“Deal.”

Lana gasped loudly behind him. “What? Ash! What are you talking about?”

He refused to budge, keeping his eyes tightly on Lysandre. “Just stay back, Lana. It’s gonna be alright.”

Lysandre laughed, loud and manic.

“Oh, aren’t you confident, little Aura boy? Let’s show him what true power is, Gyarados! Use hyper beam!”

“Pikachu, electro ball! Greninja, use cut!”

“Gyarados, use stone edge!”

The pokemon managed to block each other’s moves, but the limited space of the room filled up with dust and smoke. Ash doubled over, coughing, but suddenly Greninja sent him a vision of where Gyarados was hidden behind the haze. Ash nodded. “Use water shuriken!”

Greninja charged into the smoke and Ash heard Gyarados groaning. “Pikachu, electro ball!”

Pikachu jumped, but Lysandre and Gyarados must have spotted the light of the move, and Lysandre ordered dragon tail. Gyarados spun around and slammed into Pikachu, sending it flying.

“Pikachu!” Ash shouted worriedly. “Are you okay?” It grimaced but stood up then, legs shaking.

“Pika!”

“Hyper beam!”

It was aimed at Pikachu, still recovering, but Greninja jumped in front of it and blocked it with cut. Ash felt it all the way in his bones, and he gritted his teeth and fought against it along with Greninja.

Suddenly he heard Lana shout: “Popplio, use bubble beam!”

It hit Gyarados, interrupting its attack, and Lysandre growled, annoyed.

“Stay out of this, girl!” he threatened. “Hyper beam!”

“Lana!” Ash cried out. He watched in horror as the powerful move stormed towards her and Popplio. Lycanroc surged into it with accelerock and managed to block it but got thrown back and smashed into a wall with an anguished wail.

While Ash was distracted, Gyarados used stone edge and hit Greninja with it. Greninja got blown into the air, but it landed on its feet, groaning. Ash winced, stumbling on his feet.

“Thunderbolt, Pikachu!”

The fully charged move hit its mark, and Gyarados trembled in pain. While it was recovering, Ash placed the Waterium-Z on his Z-ring.

“Greninja”, he said to it. “I know you haven’t heard about Z-moves before, but you just gotta follow your instincts. I will lend you the power you need for this move. I know you can do it.”

 _I trust you_ , he added silently.

 _I trust you, too_ , it sent. It closed its eyes, focusing.

“Huh, what are you-? Wait!” called Lysandre, his eyes widening.

Ash took the Z-pose, activating the stream of energy between him and Greninja. “Let’s go, Greninja!” he shouted.

Greninja started glowing, and Ash could feel the power building, overwhelmingly strong.

“With our full power! Now, hydro vortex!”

Greninja charged, and the room filled with swirling water, the current so turbulent that it picked up furniture and equipment in the room, hurling them around. Distantly, he heard Lana screaming, but the sound of the vortex was all-consuming. It crashed into Gyarados, and when it dissolved, the large pokemon was back in its normal form and laying still on the floor.

 

Panting with exertion and dripping wet, Ash turned around to see if Lana was okay. She was kneeling on the ground, hugging Popplio and Lycanroc in her arms, staring at Ash with wide eyes. “Sheesh, Ash…” she mumbled.

Greninja walked back to Ash, put its hand on his shoulder and promptly de-evolved. Ash hated the empty feeling that always left him with, but he understood. It was completely exhausted.

“You were amazing”, he said, throwing his arms around it for a moment. The he stepped back and looked past it at Lysandre.

The man was staring at his fainted gyarados with blank horror. He simply couldn’t believe he had lost, Ash knew. Ash bit his lip, worried. He had no idea what Lysandre would do now.

The man recalled Gyarados and raised his head. He was now completely consumed with rage – Ash could see his body trembling with it, his face twisted hideously.

“You stupid, stupid boy”, he snarled through his teeth. “You just sealed your death.”

He took out his radio phone and spoke quickly to it, before Ash had time to react: “Code delta one! Do it, now!”

“No!” Ash screamed, and his Aura lashed out, striking the radio phone from Lysandre’s hand. But it was too late. Lysandre laughed madly, his eyes gleaming.

“Those sheep down there don’t know what that switch does”, he chuckled. “They just know to turn it when I command them so.”

Ash felt the panic swelling up in him, and he twirled around. “Lana, recall Popplio! Please, do it quickly!”

Lana looked scared too, though she didn’t know what was about to happen. She still did as Ash suggested and held Popplio’s poke ball tightly in her grip. Ash recalled Lycanroc and cursed Lysandre to hell and back that he had stolen his backpack with Pikachu’s poke ball in it. Ash glanced at Greninja. Its poke ball was… somewhere in his room in Kanto.

“Can you feel that?” said Lysandre, and the floor trembled under them. “That is the machine about to go. I only wish I could have seen the explosion.”

There was only one thing left to do. Ash remembered what Riley and Lucario had done on Iron Island, how Aura could be used as protection. He would just have to do that. He would just _have to_ pull it off.

Lysandre was still speaking, but Ash ignored him. He saw the fainted group of greninja still laying on the floor and he ran next to them, falling on his knees. “Lana, Greninja, Pikachu, come here”, he called, and his friends gathered around him, silent and terrified. Ash closed his eyes and reached out.

He felt the machine about to blow up and the energy waves it emitted were almost suffocating for him. He forced his way past it and found the lab team gathered around it. He enveloped them in his Aura.

He moved up. Lysandre’s shaking form was next. Then, he gathered the wild greninja into a protective bubble, and then Lana and Greninja and Pikachu and finally, himself.

And when that was done, the world exploded.

 

* * *

 

The next thing he knew, Lana was calling his name.

Ash cracked his eyes open, blinking against the dust in the air. His chest tightened and he rolled over, coughing roughly. He brushed his hand along his face, and it turned red with blood. He blinked at it, confused.

“Hey, take it easy”, Lana’s voice said. Her hand was on his shoulder, rubbing it gently. “Can you get up?”

“Uh”, he croaked. “I dunno…”

He pushed weakly against the pile of rubble he was laying on, and Lana grabbed his other arm, pulling him up. He sat up, head spinning.

“Where are we?” he whispered, slowly turning his head. It was almost like a massive cave around them, dark and dusty, and they were sat on top of a giant pile of crumbled concrete. He spotted Greninja and Pikachu close by, staring at him intently, and he smiled at them.

“This is – this was the building, Ash”, Lana said softly. “Something blew up big. I don’t know what you did, Ash, but you protected us all. Everyone.”

She waved her hand around, and Ash took a better look. Some distance away, the lab team were picking themselves up, looking around in shocked confusion. The wild greninja had gathered close by, sitting in silence, watching them. And Lysandre was…

He was walking towards them. Ash sucked in a breath, and Lana’s grip on his arm tightened.

Lysandre looked pale, and he stumbled on the rubble. “That was impressive, Ash”, he slurred. “That was…”

He trailed off, and his eyes rolled back. He took one step more, before falling face first into the ground.

“What’s with him?” murmured Lana. She glanced at Ash. “Stay put. I’ll go check.”

She stood up and Ash reached out feebly. “Wait, Lana! Careful…”

Lana kneeled next to Lysandre’s still form and rolled him over. Ash could only see half of her face, but he instantly knew something was wrong.

“Lana?” he asked cautiously.

Lana didn’t look at him. “Stay there, Ash”, she said, her voice wavering. “Just stay there.”

Ash rolled onto his knees and hands and crawled towards her, cold sweat breaking on his forehead from the effort.

“What’s wrong with him?” he wheezed.

Lana finally looked at him, and her eyes were big and glossy. Ash slumped down next to her and stared down at Lysandre.

 

He was dead.

 

Something had pierced his stomach, all the way through, and blood was slowly oozing from the wound. His skin was paper white and clammy, his eyes just white slits. Ash felt sick.

“I told you to stay back”, said Lana faintly. She turned around and sat on a slab of ceiling tile with a strangled sigh. “There’s nothing we could’ve done”, she mumbled.

Ash couldn’t stop looking at Lysandre. He had thought… He was sure he had…

“I tried to save him”, he whispered, agony spreading through him like a sickness. “I promise. I tried to save everyone here. I tried so hard.”

“I know, Ash”, Lana gently said. She put a hand on his chin, guiding him to look at her and not at the dead man. “You did save everyone. You saved me and Pikachu, and Greninja – all the greninja! And those lab-coated people…” She paused, making sure he was listening. “And yourself, Ash.”

Ash lowered his gaze, the dust making his eyes burn.

“He wanted to die”, Lana continued. “He wanted to die, and he wanted all of us to die with him. There was nothing in him to save.”

“I guess…”

Pikachu crawled on his lap, its eyes big and worried. “Pikapi…”

Ash smiled weakly, petting its dust-grey fur.

“We should find a way out of here”, Lana suggested. “Do you think you can walk?”

Ash glanced at her and made a face. “Uh… maybe?”

Lana stood up and grabbed his upper arm again. Greninja appeared from somewhere and took his other arm, and together they hefted him up. Ash blinked rapidly, his vision blurring in and out of focus, and he leaned heavily on his friends’ support. He wavered on place for a minute before his knees buckled and he slumped down. Lana groaned and fought to keep him up, but she was smaller than him, and Greninja was exhausted,  and he was basically dead weight between them.

Suddenly the large wild greninja was there. Lana looked at it suspiciously and slightly frightened but didn’t budge from Ash’s side.

“It’s okay”, mumbled Ash. Reluctantly, she and Greninja stepped back, and the leader of the greninja wrapped its arms around him and briskly _lifted_ him over its shoulder.

Lana balked at him and Ash giggled. “Whee…!” he let out, borderline delirious by then, before closing his eyes and fighting against a wave of vertigo.

“Alright, let’s just go”, decided Lana, and she headed for the closest opening in the ruined walls.

 

* * *

 

Ash came back to his senses somewhere few floors up.

Luckily the stairs had stayed mostly intact, so they had a way to get up. They walked up the stairs slowly, and Lana peeked into every hallway to see if anyone was around. The explosion had ruined pretty much everything up to floor -4, but for everyone’s relief no one seemed to have been on the lower floors expect for them. The upper floors were intact but badly damaged, and Ash idly hoped Serena and Kiawe had gotten out okay.

When they finally reached the ground floor, Ash patted the greninja’s back. “Hey, let me down”, he said. The greninja growled lowly, but it hefted him up anyway and placed him back onto the floor. Ash leaned on Lana for support, but he felt slightly stronger already.

They hobbled to the front doors and pushed through.

 

The sunlight was burning for their dry eyes, and they were instantly swarmed with people. There was a group of officers, and Serena and Kiawe, and Bonnie and Clemont, and – Ash had to blink twice to believe his eyes – even Alain. They were bombarded with questions, and smiles and tears, but Ash couldn’t focus on any of it.

Lana’s grip on his arm stayed strong and she pulled him through the crowd almost forcibly. They reached the other edge of it, and Officer Jenny was stood there, leaning against the hood of her car, arms folded.

“I’ll drive him to the hospital”, she was saying to Lana. Ash glanced at her.

“Yeah. And take Greninja, too”, Lana replied. She looked back at Ash and smiled. “Go with her, alright? We’re gonna be right behind you.”

“Huh?” said Ash intelligently.

“Come on”, the Jenny said kindly and guided him to the door of the back seat. “You are safe now. Just sit back and relax and you will get help real soon.”

Ash let her push him into the car and Pikachu and Greninja climbed in after him. Office Jenny slammed the door shut behind them and Ash stared at Lana, standing on the other side of the window, smiling at him.

The Jenny got onto the driver’s seat and started the car. They curved into the gravel path and Ash turned around to look back at the compound. It got smaller and smaller behind him, and when it was only a dot in the distance, he suddenly noticed how hard it was to breathe.

His chest was tight, and his eyes burned horribly, and an uncontrollable sob wrecked through his body.

His felt his face crumble with long overdue anguish.

Finally giving in to it, he leaned his head against Greninja’s shoulder, and cried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: suicidal ideation, suicide (kind of), character death (none of the main good guys), witnessing death


	19. After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's time for the return of Papa Kukui, guys! (Alternatively; poor Kukui part 2)
> 
> Oh man is there a lot to unpack...

Kukui strode through the hospital lobby and slammed his hands down on the reception desk.

“Where is he?” he asked loudly.

The girl behind the counter looked startled and she leaned back with a frown.

“Sir…”

Kukui shook his head, mentally chiding himself. He realized distantly that he was acting like a lunatic.

He forced a smile on his face and drew his hands back. “I’m sorry. I’m looking for Ash Ketchum? He was admitted today.” He almost sounded like a normal person that time.

The girl raised her eyebrows and took out a patient list. “One moment, sir.”

She gave him the directions and Kukui ran off without thanking her. His heart was racing when he finally reached the floor Ash’s room was in, and he followed the signs to a small visitors room at the end of the corridor. He paused at the doorway, staring at the sight.

Kiawe and Alain were sat there with three other children, all of them napping on small sofas or chairs. When he walked closer, Kiawe roused and raised his head groggily. His eyes widened when he saw Kukui.

“Professor!” he whispered. He glanced at his sleeping friends and stood up, walking quickly to Kukui.

“Hi, Kiawe”, Kukui replied in a low voice. “Are you okay? I came as soon as I heard.”

 _As soon as Alain, of all people, bothered to call me about the raid_ , he thought sullenly.

Kiawe nodded, biting his lip. “Yeah, I’m fine. We all are. Lana is still getting checked at, and they said they want to keep Ash overnight, but no one is badly hurt I don’t think.”

“Alright”, Kukui said, his stomach churning with anxiety. “Can I check on Ash?”

“I think so”, shrugged Kiawe. “We got to visit him shortly, but he was sleeping.” He paused, remembering something. “Actually, his doctor wanted to speak with you first. She was reluctant to tell us any details.”

Kukui nodded numbly, and Kiawe pointed him towards the doctor’s office.

 

He paused at the door, taking a deep breath. Then, he knocked.

“Come in!” called a crisp voice.

Kukui stepped in and closed the door behind him. He nodded at the doctor sitting behind her desk, looking at him intensely, but not unkindly.

“Hello”, Kukui greeted. “My name is Professor Kukui. You wanted to talk to me about Ash Ketchum?”

“Nice to meet you Professor, I’m doctor Annie”, she replied with a small smile. She eyed him a moment, and Kukui wondered if she was suspicious about his lab coat-and-no-shirt combo. He probably should have changed into something more appropriate.

“Can I just ask first… You aren’t his biological father, right?” the doctor started. “Ash only called you ‘Professor’ and when we asked him about his parents, he mentioned just his mother.”

“Oh, I’m not, no”, blurted Kukui, shaking his head vigorously. “I’m a pokemon school teacher in Alola, and he is my student there. I’m not even his legal guardian, really. He just happens to live with me.”

The doctor looked surprised, looking down at a paper on her desk. “Huh…”

Kukui hoped he hadn’t ruined his changes to get more information about Ash’s condition. He really needed to hear everything. Otherwise he would probably explode from stress quite soon.

“Well, Professor”, she said after a moment. “Ash filled his own admittance form, and on the parent/guardian section he wrote, and I quote: ‘Mom and Professor Kukui. If mom is busy, you can tell everything to the Professor. He will know what to do.’” She raised her eyebrows and looked up to Kukui. Kukui blinked, frozen for a second before a shocked laughter burst out of him.

“Oh”, he choked out.

The doctor smiled lopsidedly. “When I saw this, I told him what a guardian meant, that it was a person who was allowed do medical decisions on his behalf. He confirmed that yes, it’s correct, and that ‘Professor Kukui probably knows more about that stuff than I do, anyway’.”

It sounded so much like Ash that Kukui felt his heart grow twice its size with relief. He grinned at her for a moment before shaking his head and asking: “So…?”

“So”, said the doctor. “We contacted his mother, of course, but it will take her a while to get here from Kanto. She also said that you have been taking good care of her son and we can let you in on the details. So, if you are ready?”

And instantly, Kukui felt his face grow pale and his stomach twisting into knots. He steeled himself and nodded. “Um – thank you. Yes.”

“All right, let’s start from the top.” She shuffled her papers, frowning slightly. “When he was brought in, about three hours ago, he was with Officer Jenny. We haven’t yet heard an official report from the police, but what we gathered from him and his friends was that he had been held captive for several hours in criminal headquarters.” She paused, and Kukui stumbled forward, slumping to sit down on the nearest chair. The doctor glanced at him and continued: “Physically, the thing that most concerned us was his very low blood pressure, which had been caused by severe dehydration combined with anemia from blood loss. He said the latter was mainly because of a nosebleed that had gone on for a while. He didn’t really specify the reason for it, but he said he doesn’t usually have a habit of getting nosebleeds.”

She looked at Kukui, and he jumped, blinking. “Oh, um… No, I have never seen him getting a nosebleed. And his mother didn’t mention anything towards that either when I asked if he had any health issues I should know about.”

“All right”, she nodded, leaning back over her papers. “He had no major wounds or broken bones, but he admitted after some prodding that his shoulder had been dislocated and then put back during a scuffle. It won’t need surgery, but the joint was slightly swollen, so I stabilized it and wrote him a prescription for the pain. The splint should be worn for at least three to four days, and then he should have a new appointment to check how the joint is healing.”

Kukui knew the splint was going down the trash shoot the minute Ash got out of the hospital. Still, he nodded, struggling to digest everything that doctor Annie was telling him.

“He was completely exhausted when he came in, but he put on a brave face. He is a sweet kid – very funny, too.” She smiled, and Kukui smiled too, his heart swelling with pride. Then, she added: “But you can’t let him fool you with that.”

Kukui swallowed, his stomach dropping.

“What I have told you so far”, she continued, softer now, “is only the physical damage we found, Professor. He had minor signs of manhandling on him, and bruising around his wrists, but he didn’t offer us any details voluntarily. With a child that has gone through a trauma like this one, it’s usually best to approach it gradually and on their own terms. Whether he comes to live with you or his mother after this, there needs to be someone around him that he trusts and can offer him the emotional support he needs, whenever he needs it. And if that’s not enough, I strongly recommend looking into your local options for trauma support.”

Kukui stared blankly at her, his head buzzing. “Yes”, he said. He wasn’t sure if that even was a logical thing to say as an answer, but it was the only thing he could come up with. He took a shaky breath. “Can I see him?”

“Sure”, the doctor said. “He went to sleep almost immediately after we left him alone, but you can go sit with him for as long as you want. I think it would be good for him to see a familiar face when he wakes up.”

She gave him a room number, and with his entire body trembling with restlessness, he speed-walked there, pushed on the door and quietly stepped in.

 

He shouldn’t have been so surprised to see the greninja there, but he was. He was only halfway over the threshold when something big and blue and angry dashed across the room and blocked his entrance. It scowled up at him, and he stared back at it, eyes wide.

“Hello”, he said slowly. “I’m Professor Kukui. You must be Greninja?”

It eyed him for a while longer, before stepping back and nodding. Kukui saw Pikachu raising its head on the hospital bed, and it snapped something at Greninja. Greninja grunted something back and turned on its toes, striding back to the window on the far wall.

Kukui let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and grinned at Pikachu. “Pikachu! Good to see you.”

“Pika!”

Kukui’s smile fell when he saw Ash. He looked small and pale on the wide bed, his right arm splinted and an intravenous drip going into his other hand. He was sleeping with a relaxed look on his face, but Kukui still wanted to wrap him into a tight hug and tell him everything was going to be okay, and that he was sorry he hadn’t been there for him more.

He really should have done a lot more, and a lot sooner.

The feeling of remorse made his insides twist painfully, and he sat down next to Ash’s bed and buried his head in his folded arms. “I’m sorry”, he mumbled into Ash’s blanket. “I’m just… I’m sorry.”

 

He didn’t know how long he sat there like that – it might have been minutes, or hours – when he heard a soft voice ask: “Professor?”

His head shot up, and he blinked groggily. Ash was gazing quietly at him, his eyes sleepy and a small smile playing on his lips.

Kukui cleared his throat and sat up gingerly, his back screaming. “Hi, kid”, he murmured.

“When’d’you come ‘ere?” Ash slurred, and that was when Kukui realized why he was acting so relaxed. Painkillers. And possibly muscle relaxants.

He smiled. “Not that long ago. Alain called me and told me you had gotten yourself into big trouble. How are you doing?”

Maybe relaxed like this, he might give something away, Kukui hoped.

Ash blinked slowly, pursing his lips. “Wha’time is it? he asked instead.

Or not. Kukui stifled a sigh. “It’s still early afternoon. It’s only been a couple of hours since you came in here.”

“Oh… Where’re my pok’mon?” Ash muttered worriedly, glancing around. “Litten and… Rowlet… Lycanroc…”

Alain had told Kukui that one. “They are still getting checked by Nurse Joy. I’m sure they will be here soon.”

“Okay…” Ash frowned. “Lysandre”, he said then, and Kukui’s heart skipped a beat.

He leaned forward, anxiously. “What about him, Ash?”

Ash looked away, and silent tears rolled down his cheeks.

He mumbled: “I killed him.”

_What?_

“I didn’t _want_ him to die, Prof’ssor…”

Kukui felt frozen, terrified. “Ash, hey…”

He had no idea what to say, so he asked, so quietly it was almost silent: “What happened? Was it self-defense?”

Ash’s gaze slid back to him and he shrugged mildly.

“I don’wanna talk ‘bout it.”

_What?!_

“Wait wait wait”, Kukui frantically said. He reached out before stopping himself, not knowing if he was allowed to touch Ash. His hand hovered above him for a moment, before he dropped it back on the edge of the bed. “Hey, please don’t clam up. Tell me more! Or… If not about that, how about something else? How about… How was it to see Greninja again?”

Ash looked over at Greninja. He smiled softly. “’Twas great. It’s so strong…”

He spoke about Greninja for a while, his speech slurring more and more and the sentences ending midway through more than not. Still, Kukui listened to him intently, absorbing every halting word. Eventually Ash trailed off, settling deeper into his pillow and closing his eyes.

He didn’t talk after that.

Kukui reached out again, carefully, and brushed back the soft curl of hair on his forehead.

Then, he buried his face into his palms and let out a silent scream.

 

* * *

 

When he stepped out of Ash’s room, he was faced with a large crowd of anxious people.

Alain and the other Kalosian kids were there, but also his entire class, and the parents of his class. The Alolan group had managed to catch a later plane than him, but apparently that one had now arrived.

Kukui clicked the door shut behind him and crossed his arms.

“He’s sleeping”, he said, shutting them down before they could start shouting over each other. “Let’s move somewhere else.”

 

It took longer than he liked, but eventually everyone was more or less calm, and the families were sitting together in the lobby, relieved to see their kids doing fine. Kukui walked up to Lana and her dad. He glanced at him apologetically, before saying to Lana: “Can I talk to you for a moment?”

Lana looked at him a bit warily but nodded. “Sure, Prof.”

Kukui waved his hand. “Let’s take a walk.”

They stepped outside into the sunlight, and it felt amazing after being cooped up inside for a while. They crossed a road and ducked into Lumiose City’s central park. Kukui smiled, slowly feeling himself relaxing, and he glanced at Lana.

“So… How are you? I heard you got your share of the damage. Are you fine, now?”

Lana shrugged, gazing ahead of her blankly. “Yeah.”

Kukui frowned. She wasn’t the most talkative on normal days, but she seemed unusually withdrawn now, even for her.

Kukui decided to prod some more. “I know we are still waiting for the official news from the police, but I heard Kiawe talking with your other friends… Was there an explosion at the headquarters? Did you get hurt because of that?”

Lana scowled at the ground, rubbing her bandaged arm unconsciously. “No.”

Kukui raised his eyebrows. “No, there wasn’t an explosion, or no, that wasn’t where you got hurt?”

Lana stopped on her tracks, turning around and staring up at Kukui with surprisingly clear anger.

“What do you wanna hear, Professor?” she snapped. “You don’t know- you have no idea what we…”

She rubbed at her eyes, her tiny body trembling with rage and sorrow. Kukui was at a loss. He had stepped straight into the deep end with his one, it seemed.

“Lana… I’m sorry”, he said haltingly, though he knew it wasn’t nearly enough. She sucked in a breath and seemed to calm down a bit.

“It’s OK, Prof.” She finally looked at him, and her eyes were big and luminous.

“Yes, there was an explosion”, she continued quietly, coolly. “No, I didn’t get hurt there. I got hurt because Lysandre tried to kill me, but I was saved by Ash and Greninja just in time.”

Kukui knew he was staring. “He tried to kill you? B-but why?”

Lana smirked, but there was no humor in it. “I called him a clown.”

They fell silent. After a minute, they began walking again, neither of them leading the other.

Kukui’s head was spinning with everything he had heard so far, and he felt wrecked with emotions ranging from pride to fear. These kids were so incredible, and they meant the world to him. It was excruciating to see them like this.

Then, Lana glanced up at him again, thoughtful. “Lysandre is dead, you know”, she stated.

Kukui felt his insides twisting again. He nodded. “Uh, yes. Ash told me.”

That seemed to pique Lana’s interest, and she tilted her head. “Really? What did he say?”

“That he killed him.”

Lana stopped again, jerking almost violently, her eyes widening. “What?”

Kukui shrugged helplessly. “That’s what he told me. I mean, I’m sure it was an accident, or self-defense–“

“He didn’t fucking kill him!” Lana screamed, and now it was Kukui’s turn to freeze in shock. Lana spun on her heels and stormed back towards the hospital. “I’m gonna to talk to him”, she said over her shoulder.

Kukui ran after her, completely baffled.

_What the hell was going on?_

“Lana, wait!” he called, but she was off. She strode across the front lobby, past her father and her friends, and started climbing the nearest stairs with an impressive pace. Kukui stopped for second, seeing the agitation on the families’ faces.

“Give us a moment. Everything’s fine.”

He hoped.

Kukui sprinted after her again, cursing himself for slacking off on his gym routine lately. He was wheezing by the time he reached Ash’s floor. He jogged to Ash’s door and found it slightly ajar. He paused next to it, listening in.

“No buts, Ash, it’s just simply not true!” Lana was yelling, though she was clearly attempting to keep her voice down.

“I could’ve tried harder!” came Ash’s seething voice. He seemed much more clearheaded compared to earlier, though quite weak still.

“Oh yeah?” Lana sneered. “Like saving me and two dozen other living beings from a massive explosion wasn’t hard enough?”

Ash fell silent.

“How did you do it, anyways?” continued Lana, softer now. “For a moment, I was sure I was floating in Popplio’s bubble, but it was in my poke ball. Then I thought you were doing it with Greninja, but it wasn’t bond-evolved anymore. So, it must’ve been just you.”

Ash still didn’t reply, so Lana continued: “When the building stopped falling on us, we were all set down super gently and then the blue glow disappeared. It got kinda sucked away from us, like you were absorbing it all back. Then you were the only one glowing, but I think you were unconscious by then. After that faded, it was just really silent, and really dark, and your face was all bloody and you weren’t responding…” Lana trailed off, her voice getting strangled.

Kukui’s heart was racing, and he felt bad for listening in, but he was in too deep already. He needed to know.

“Lana…” spoke Ash then. He seemed to hesitate for a moment, before asking: “Have you ever heard about Aura?”

 _No,_ thought Kukui, _no way!_

“Yeah, like what lucario use”, Lana answered slowly. “What about it?”

“Well, because of _my_ Aura, I know that Professor Kukui’s standing right behind that door”, said Ash casually.

Kukui lost his balance, staggering on the spot and hitting the door with his elbow. “Shit!” he hissed.

Lana opened the door, and Kukui stood up, ramrod straight, his face burning. Lana was scowling at him, and he looked over her shoulder at Ash. He was sat on the bed, Pikachu on his lap and the rest of his pokemon crowded around him, smiling slyly.

“I’m sorry”, Kukui muttered, rubbing his neck. “I shouldn’t spy on you like that.”

“It’s alright”, said Ash. “I woulda told you at some point anyway.”

Kukui nodded miserably, but at the same time, he really couldn’t control his curiosity.

He walked closer, sitting down next to his bed. “So, it’s really true? You have Aura?”

Ash nodded silently, and there was something in his eyes that made Kukui hesitate his next words.

“Is that… Is that why Lysandre was interested in you?”

“Man, I dunno”, shrugged Ash. “In a way, I guess. He knew I had something abnormal in me that allowed me to do what I can do with Greninja. He wanted to study that and use it to his advantage.”

Kukui hated how he had used the word _abnormal_ , and not _special_.

“Okay”, he said softly. “Do you want to talk about it now?”

Ash shook his head. “Not really.” He made a face, seeming a bit uneasy. “I can tell you more about it later, though. I don’t mind.”

“Of course, whenever you want”, Kukui promised. He turned back to Lana, who was standing at the end of Ash’s bed, looking between them in mild annoyance.

“Well, I for one don’t really know how this Aura stuff works, but I just know it saved my life back there”, she said firmly. “Ash saved my life. And he didn’t kill Lysandre, Professor, you just gotta believe me. Lysandre died because he was crazy with power and tried to blow us all to bits. Ash did his best to protect him, but I don’t think you can easily save someone who doesn’t want to be saved.”

Kukui turned to look at Ash, but the boy had lowered his gaze, staring intently at Pikachu. He took a deep breath and let it out, before smiling gently. “Thanks, Lana”, he murmured.

There was a knock on the door and doctor Annie stepped in. She glanced around the room, probably sensing the weird mood. Shrugging then, she smiled at Ash.

“I’m here to check your IV and your bandages. If your friends could step out to the hallway for a minute…?”

Kukui stood up. “Yes, let’s give them space”, he said to Lana. He paused, looking at Ash. “You want us to come back? Or do you want to be alone for a moment?”

Ash was still looking at Pikachu, petting its soft fur. “I guess I would like to be alone”, he began slowly. “But can you tell my mom to come see me when she gets here?”

“Yeah, of course”, answered Kukui, his chest hurting with all kinds of emotions. He shooed Lana along, and they left Ash’s room in silence.

 

* * *

 

When they got back to the lobby, Lana beelined to his father’s side and buried her face into his chest.

Her father wrapped his arms around her and whispered something into her hair, before raising his eyes to look at Kukui. He didn’t look angry, but Kukui knew there would be words said, later.

Kukui closed his eyes briefly, suddenly exhausted. He leaned against a wall and sighed deeply.

What a day.

Then, someone cleared their throat near him.

“Hey… Professor Kukui?”

 He opened his eyes and saw Alain standing there, his face serious. Kukui blinked at him, flustered.

“You all right?” the kid asked after a moment.

“Ah, yeah, yes!” Kukui hurried to answer. “Yup, yes, I’m okay.”

Alain raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms.

“Ookay. So… How was Ash?”

“He was…” Kukui hesitated, his mind sorting through his conversations with Ash from that day. He bit his lip and backpedaled. “He’s going to be okay. Not today, and maybe not tomorrow, but eventually.”

Alain nodded, his gaze far away. “Yeah.”

They migrated to the nearest bench and sat down. Kukui leaned his head back, resting it against the wall behind it.

He would be okay, too.

Eventually.


	20. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did it guys, I finished it! WOOO!
> 
> There might be a one shot -type sequel to this and/or "missing scene" ficlets added to this as a series later, but I'll have to see what happens. (Let me know below what you would like to see! Example: Ash arriving at the hospital with Officer Jenny / Ash meeting Kukui's Lucario / anything else!)
> 
> I also have plans to write fic relating to the new series when it starts airing (very soon!), so hopefully I'll see some of you guys checking that out!
> 
> I want to thank each and every one of you for cheering me on. I literally cannot believe I finished an over 65 000 word fic. BIG HUGS. <3
> 
> Now, let's go...

His mom’s plane was delayed, so after dinner, his friends came to visit instead.

It was great to see them again. Ash sat on the bed, grinning his face sore, and listened his friends joking around. Kiawe, Serena, Bonnie and Clemont were unharmed, and they weren’t talking about Lysandre, so it was good. Lillie, Mallow and Sophocles seemed slightly overwhelmed by the whole thing, but they were joining in on the topics all the same.

Lana and Alain hung back and sat by the window with Greninja, but Ash chose to ignore them and their unsociable, sulky Aura.

He was having fun.

“Oooh yeah, have you guys ever heard about Hoopa?” giggled Bonnie, joining in on a heated conversation about legendary and mythical pokemon the older kids were having.

“I think I read about it once”, said Lillie thoughtfully. “It can warp space, right? It can reach out through its rings and seize anything from anywhere in the world.”

“What, really?” yelped Sophocles, almost falling off his chair. “I want that power!”

“That would be so useful!” grinned Mallow. “I can see it working great in our restaurant. No more running around between tables!”

Clemont chuckled. “We met it, you know? It’s pretty cheeky and unpredictable. I don’t think it would make a good waiter.”

“Really?” gasped Kiawe. “You met the mythical pokemon Hoopa? How was it?”

Serena, Bonnie and Clemont all turned to look at Ash. He saw everyone else turn to stare at him too, and he shrugged, suddenly feeling almost self-conscious. Exposed, in a way. The cast felt tight around his shoulder, and he wanted to fidget with it. The IV needle itched, and his legs were restless. He squinted against the bright lights. His head hurt.

“Uh, it was… eventful”, he ended up saying, when the silence stretched uncomfortably. “Hoopa is an amazing pokemon.”

“Pikaa…”

The room was quiet, suddenly. His friends were looking at him oddly, almost worriedly.

Ash mustered up a smile, his hand tightening around Pikachu. He let out a short laugh. “Um…”

“Hey, you must be tired”, said Mallow gently. She and Serena shared a knowing look, and Serena nodded.

“Yeah, it’s getting late and its already been a really long day”, she added. “After all that happened today… I think all of us should be going to bed.”

“You two are right”, agreed Clemont. He grabbed Bonnie’s shoulder and stood up. “We should be going too.” Bonnie huffed and puffed at first, but Clemont made a face at her and she sobered up quickly. “Yup, see you tomorrow, Ash”, she chirped.

Kiawe, Sophocles and Mallow stood up too, and Ash watched as they all waved their goodbyes and left the room one after another, leaving just Alain and Lana by the window.

 “You’re not that convincing, you know”, said Lana, walking up to him, and Ash winced.

“Gee, thanks, Lana”, he grumbled. Lana smirked, slapping his knee playfully.

“See you in the morning, Ash. Don’t get into any trouble in the meantime.”

Ash grinned, and he was surprised how genuine it felt. After Lana ducked out of the door, Alain stopped by the end of his bed too, nodding his head slightly.

“Yeah, rest up, pal. Tomorrow is a new day.”

“Thank you, Alain, really”, Ash said, smiling.

Alain hesitated briefly. “Hey, by the way…” he said then. “I got a text from my friend Jenny. The police are still working on clearing the scene together with the fire department, but they think they got every former and new Team Flare member arrested. Even Mable and Celosia, this time.”

Ash nodded numbly. “Okay.”

He knew he should have felt relieved, but he just felt… tired.

Alain continued: “They found a backpack as well. It had some stuff in it that made them think it might be yours.” Alain chuckled shortly. “I will try to get it back to you next thing tomorrow.”

“Thanks”, said Ash, and he glanced at Pikachu. Its poke ball… He hoped it was safe.

“No worries, Ash”, Alain said. He waved his goodnights, and when the door closed behind him, Ash breathed out and sank deeper into his pillow.

He was exhausted.

Lycanroc, Litten and Rowlet were already snoozing on the end of his bed. Pikachu curled tighter on his lap, and Greninja sat down by his bed, closing its eyes. Ash relaxed, focusing on the sound of their soft breathing.

He was asleep almost immediately.

 

* * *

 

He woke up to a soft humming a couple of hours later.

It was his mom, he knew, before he had even opened his eyes. Her Aura was warm and familiar, and it reminded him of home. He smiled, turned his head on the pillow and looked up at her.

“Hi, mom.”

She quieted down. Her hand in his left one tightened, and she hiccupped.

“Oh, did I wake you up?” she asked. Ash shook his head and she brushed a hand along his forehead, smiling softly. “How are you, honey?”

“I’m fine, mom.” He scooted back on the bed, grimacing, trying and failing to find a better position. “I just wanna get out of here already.”

She sighed. “I know, honey. But doctor Annie said you need to spend the night. You lost a lot of blood.” She tilted her head, looking at him curiously. “I didn’t know you got nosebleeds! Is it a new thing?”

Ash hesitated. In hindsight, he now knew it had been something to do with his Aura, but it had startled him, too. It had happened after Lysandre’s experiments, and apparently (he didn’t remember much of that), after he had protected everyone from the explosion.

Though, now that he thought about it… Way earlier, when he was still practicing his bond evolution with Greninja, he remembered blowing his nose afterwards and seeing some blood. Back then, he hadn’t thought much of it.

He shrugged mildly. “Yeah, I guess it’s a pretty new thing”, he answered.

“Well, just be careful from now on. Always bring a tissue with you.” His mom smiled slyly, and Ash knew she was joking around.

She sighed then, leaning back. “So, I was told we need to spend a few days here in Lumiose City, while the police are doing their work. But after that… Are you coming back to Kanto with me?”

Ash balked at her, his heart jumping uncomfortably.

“What?” he blurted out, drawing his knees up and disturbing sleeping Pikachu. “But mom, I only just started in the pokemon school! I can’t just drop out like that, can I?”

His mom nodded seriously. “You can, if you want to, honey.”

“I…” Ash trailed off, pausing to really think about it. In the end, it didn’t take long for him to decide, and he was almost surprised how sure he felt. “I don’t want to”, he said firmly. “I want to go back to Alola with Professor Kukui and my friends and continue studying with them!”

His mom smiled, sweet and bright, and she leaned in to hug him gently. “Oh, Professor Kukui is going to be so happy to hear that!”

Ash returned the hug as best as he could, feeling a bit baffled. “Mom…?”

“He’s been so stressed out, poor man!” she chuckled. Her face softened, and she continued: “I think Alola has been good for you, and I think it will still be, after this. The nature and the culture… And all those nice friends you have there… It would be nothing like that in Kanto.”

Ash nodded silently. His mom’s eyes widened, and she bent over to rummage through her bag. “That reminded me! I brought you something.”

She took out a poke ball and handed it to Ash. He stared at it, his heart swelling with emotions. “Greninja’s poke ball”, he whispered. He grinned, wide and bright, and he reached out to hug his mom again. “Thank you so much!”

“I thought you might want it closer to you”, she said happily. Ash glanced at Greninja, sitting by the window, and saw the pleased look on its face. Ash smiled and he leaned back onto his pillow, feeling content.

Things were looking up.

 

* * *

 

Early the next morning, doctor Annie came in to do some final tests.

When she was done, she gave him a thumbs up and said: “Great work! You’re as good as new. Just keep that shoulder brace on for now, and I will check on it before you leave the city, alright?”

Ash pouted, poking at it sadly. “Do I really gotta? I can’t train with this on so good.”

The doctor laughed, looking at him with warm eyes. “That might just be a good thing. It’s there to remind you that your body is still in recovery, and that you should take it easy for a couple of days.”

“Man…” sighed Ash. “That’s so boring.”

The door opened and his mom stepped in, followed by Professor Kukui. “Are you ready to go, honey?” she asked. Professor Kukui placed his backpack (still slightly gritty) and a change of clothes (now clean from blood) onto his bedside table, smiling.

Ash jumped off the bed, testing his balance. He felt a lot stronger already, though he had refused the latest dose of painkillers and now every part of his body felt kind of sore and stiff. It was still much better than how he had been the previous day, so it was fine.

“Yep!” he replied. He turned to his pokemon, crowded around his feet. “You ready, guys?” he asked, and they cheered, excited to be on their way.

 

The next couple of days went by in a blur.

The police interviews were tough on him, though everyone was very considerate towards him and he wasn’t pressured to expand on too many details. Mainly, they wanted to know about Lysandre’s motivations towards gaining the power he wanted, about who Ash had seen there working for him, and about the events that led up to the explosion.

Professor Kukui was there with him when he explained about his Aura to a couple of high-ranking officers. They were told these testimonies would be logged in as restricted, and for everyone else, Ash was encouraged to say that he had been knocked unconscious and couldn’t remember the events. Hearing that made him feel so relieved that when Professor Kukui took him for ice creams after, he couldn’t stop smiling at every passer-by and pokemon he saw around.

When he wasn’t at the police station, he hung out with his friends at the park. It was fun for him to see his two groups of friends get along so well, and he knew they were going to keep in contact long after they separated. Especially Serena and Mallow, who bonded over their love for cooking, and Sophocles and Clemont, who found that they had a lot in common with their interests in electric types and technology.

 

* * *

 

It was the third morning after they had arrived in Lumiose City, and their flight back to Melemele Island was scheduled for the evening.

The whole group had gathered at the park for a farewell picnic. Serena, Mallow and Lana had prepared a bunch of delicious treats for everyone and Lillie, Bonnie and Kiawe were setting the tables for the feast. The  pokemon had run farther away on the meadow, playing around and shrieking with joy. Meanwhile, Sophocles and Clemont were crouched over Clemont’s old ‘Clembot Mini’, and they were watching footage of Ash and Greninja’s first synchronizing attempt.

“See there, how their pulse waves start to line up?” Clemont was saying, while Sophocles stared at the data in awe. “That’s when I knew the synchronization was about to take place!”

“Wow, amazing”, gasped Sophocles. “They really are becoming one!”

Ash, lounging on the grass next to them, felt his stomach twist with sudden anxiety. As Sophocles turned to stare at him with wide eyes, he drew his knees up to his chest and smiled awkwardly.

“That’s just fantastic, Ash”, Sophocles continued excitedly. “Remember when you and Pikachu trained at my lab so you could challenge Tapu Koko? The data I got from that was mind blowing!”

He grinned. “And literally blowing, since you blew up the machine, hahaha!”

Clemont laughed at that, and he fast-forwarded the footage to show the end of Ash and Alain’s battle.

“Everything went well up to this point”, he explained to Sophocles. “But something happened here, and they started to de-synchronize. Ash ended up fainting because of it. Huh, I remember how that really scared us… But this was well before Ash and Greninja perfected the bond, though!”

“Cool”, said Sophocles, rubbing his chin. He glanced at Ash again, his eyes shining with eagerness. “Hey, you should try it now! I bet the results would be even more impressive – oh, and you should try a Z-move while you’re like that, too!” He frowned, thinking. “Greninja knows cut, right? So.. You could do a normal type Z-move with the Normalium Z you have!”

Ash blinked, his heart racing uncomfortably. He really didn’t want to be a subject to experiments anymore, especially not so soon after suffering through Lysandre’s. But Sophocles was so excited, and Clemont was nodding and smiling encouragingly, and he knew everyone would love to see Ash-Greninja…

“Uh…” he said, swallowing. “S-sure?”

“Awesome!” yelled Sophocles, and close by Lillie and Kiawe stopped what they were doing and turned to look at them.

“What’s going on?” asked Kiawe, walking closer with Lillie on his heels.

“Ash is gonna show us his thing with Greninja!” cheered Sophocles, still way too loud for Ash’s liking. Everyone was now gazing at their direction curiously, and Ash wanted nothing more than to call back his pokemon and run.

“Guys, don’t get too excited…” he chuckled uneasily and pulled his hat lower on his head. “It’s nothing that special.”

“Come on, you know that’s not true”, said Serena sunnily. “It’s truly something else! And none of your new friends have even seen you battling like that yet.”

“I have”, said Lana softly, and instantly everyone’s attention was on her. But she was looking at Ash, her gaze thoughtful. “It was incredible.”

“Wait, when?” cried Kiawe. “I only saw it in that form really briefly! When did the battle happen?”

Lana was still staring at Ash and he shook his head at her, ever so slightly. Then, he wrapped his non-splinted arm around his legs and focused on just breathing. In and out…

“When I went down to the labs to help him”, continued Lana, turning back to the group. “But I shouldn’t be the one to tell that story. And if Ash doesn’t wanna do it now, I don’t think we should pressure him.”

Ash stared at his trembling hands, disgusted by how scared he felt. He had done it a million times with Greninja, after all. Why did it feel like the end of the world, now?

“But he just said he wants to do it!” argued Sophocles. "You heard it too, right Clemont?"

Lillie murmured: “Hey, maybe we shouldn’t…”

“Ash?” asked Mallow.

He knew they were now all staring at him, and he gritted his teeth, sucking in a breath.

 _Get a grip,_ he thought desperately. _You’re making a fool of yourself._

Then, suddenly, a shadow fell on him, and he raised his head in surprise. Greninja was standing in front of him, its long legs and torso blocking his view to his friends.

And their view to him.

“Greninja?” he muttered, puzzled. “What’s going on?”

“Ni-greni”, it said lowly, holding its hand out for him. Frowning, Ash grabbed its hand and allowed it to pull him up.

“Ninja, gre greninja.”

Ash stared at it. “You want… us to do it?”

“Nja.”

Heart racing, palms sweating, Ash nodded. He didn’t resist the transformation, and soon Greninja was standing there in its strongest form.

It was still holding onto his left hand, when it sent: _Lysandre is dead._

Ash’s stomach twisted. “I know, but –“

 _We are not his slaves. He cannot hurt us anymore_ , continued Greninja. _We owe nothing to him._

Ash shook his head slowly. “Greninja…”

_Do you not feel stronger like this? When we are together? Do you not remember how it felt to defeat him in battle?_

“I do”, said Ash, and he did. He remembered how great it had felt, the shared power and the unwavering connection between him and Greninja. It felt great now, too.

He smiled and dropped his hand down to his side. Greninja nodded, solemn and pleased.

Ash looked past it, at his friends. They were all standing there, silent and staring in awe.

Ash grinned at them, and it shook him how real it felt. “Sorry guys, I got… confused for a moment”, he chuckled. “But Greninja reminded me what’s important. So…” He stepped back and waved his hand towards Greninja.

The silence went on for a beat longer, before Sophocles and Kiawe began squealing.

“Oh wow! It’s so cool!”

“Amazing…!”

“Yay, Ash-Greninja!” cheered Bonnie, and she ran through the crowd and wrapped her tiny arms around its body. Seeing Greninja’s confused expression made Ash’s chest bubble with laughter. He backed off and let everyone have a proper look.

Lana appeared next to him. She wasn’t smiling, and she said: “I’m sorry. I should’ve kept my mouth shut.”

Ash blinked at her, taken aback. “No, it’s alright.”

“It’s not, though”, Lana said. “You haven’t told us what happened – and you don’t have to”, she added quickly after seeing his expression, “but we shouldn’t assume that everything is instantly back to normal.”

“I guess so…” shrugged Ash. “But like you said, you couldn’t have known. And honestly, even I didn’t know that it would scare me like that. But it’s fine now, I promise.”

“Okay”, Lana allowed. “Just remember that you don’t have to agree to do anything you don’t wanna do.”

“What’s going on?” asked Serena’s voice then. She was walking closer, looking at Ash with big eyes, concerned. “Are you okay, Ash?”

Ash chuckled nervously, and Lana smirked, turning away. “Anyway, I wanna have a good look at Ash-Greninja, too”, she said, before briskly walking off.

 

It took a while for everyone to calm down. Ash could feel the uncomfortableness oozing from Greninja, and he knew it had never been a fan of being the center of attention. Eventually, he did step up next to it and shooed everyone to back off.

He smiled at Greninja, and asked: “Do you wanna try a new Z-move with me?”

It considered it briefly before nodding.

“Great”, grinned Ash. “It’s called ‘breakneck blitz’. I’ll guide you through it, don’t worry.”

 Sophocles was looking at them with stars in his eyes. “Oh cool, you’re doing it!”, he cried. “Can we record it? Please, Ash!”

Ash shook his head. “Maybe later, Sophocles”, he said softly. “But not today.”

The boy seemed to finally understand that something was going on. He bit his lip, taking a step back. “Oh…” he mumbled. “Okay. Sorry.”

“It’s fine”, smiled Ash, and ripped off the shoulder brace. He dropped it on the ground and walked farther away from the group, Greninja following him. Ash pointed at a large boulder on the edge of the meadow. “Let’s aim there, Greninja. Just be careful with the rubble flying at you after you’ve hit it.”

“Nja”, it confirmed, crouching in preparation.

“Alright!” Ash began, focusing. He placed his Normalium Z on his Z-ring, and the energy started instantly building. “With our full power!”

He took the Z-pose with Greninja. Greninja lit up in blue flames and its eyes thinned to slits. Ash felt himself vibrating with the power, and he shouted: “Now, breakneck blitz!”

Greninja charged, and it moved so fast it was almost invisible. It hit the rock with a massive explosion, and Ash shielded his head with his arms instinctively, feeling the impact rattling him to his bones.

Smoke and dust billowed, and when that settled, Greninja was left standing in the middle of an open field, the rock as good as vanished.

Everyone watching them cheered, even some random passersby, and Ash grinned. He felt happy and relieved, and somehow like a big weight had been taken off his shoulders.

They had done it, and nothing bad had happened.

Greninja jogged back up to him and Ash could see it was happy, too.

 

Though, that was before someone yelled, loudly: “ASH!”

He whipped his head around and… Professor Kukui was standing at the edge of the meadow, glaring at him. Ash felt his grin grow awkward, and he rubbed his neck in embarrassment.

“Oh, Professor, hi”, he called back.

Professor Kukui walked closer, picking up the discarded shoulder brace on the way. “You seem to have dropped something”, he said sternly, though Ash could see he was fighting against a smile, his lips twitching.

Ash bit his lip, fighting a smile as well. “Um, yeah. Sorry, Professor.”

Professor Kukui laughed, and he looked at him warmly. “I’m here to take you to your checkup at the hospital. You better put this back on, or the doctor’s going to be mad.”

Ash grinned and did as he was told, and the Professor glanced around him, spotting Greninja.

“Oh, so this is the famous Ash-Greninja”, he said curiously. He stepped closer, his tall form throwing a shadow over them. “Fascinating…”

Without thinking, his heart suddenly racing, Ash stepped between them, shielding Greninja with his body. He stared up at Kukui with wide eyes, and it took him a half a second to realize he had messed up.

Kukui backed off instantly, his hands wide at his sides. He looked at Ash, hurt and confusion flashing across his face before his expression settled at apologetic. “I’m sorry”, he said quickly, finally stopping at a good distance away from them. “I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s fine”, said Ash, his throat feeling tight and his hands suddenly freezing cold. “Let’s just go, okay?” He turned his back to Kukui and called back Rowlet, Lycanroc and Litten. Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder, and he tried to recall Greninja, too, but the poke ball wasn’t working.

“Greninja, what?” he asked, frustrated. Greninja shook its head and seemed as baffled as he was.

“Maybe it won’t work while its bond-evolved”, suggested Kukui quietly. Ash glanced at him and seeing his grim expression, he felt regret gnawing at his stomach. He knew he had frightened the Professor, and he hated it.

“You think so?” he asked, attempting a smile. He turned back to Greninja and tilted his head.

 _Why aren’t you de-evolving?_ he asked silently.

 _Are you sure you want me to?_ it sent, frowning.

 _What?_ Ash asked, surprised. Then, he understood. _You mean ‘cause of the Professor? No way, he’s a good guy! I just…_

He sighed. _For a second I though he was someone else._

Greninja gazed at him for a moment longer, before it nodded and de-evolved. Ash recalled it and turned to face the Professor. “I’m ready to go”, he said lightly, and waved a hand at his friends. “See you soon, guys!” he called. They had been watching the scene in confused silence, but they waved back after a second.

“Alright”, nodded the Professor, his posture finally relaxing a bit. “Follow me.”

 

* * *

 

Eventually, sooner than anyone liked, it was time to head to the airport.

After getting hugged to death by his mother, Ash was approached by Serena, Bonnie and Clemont.

“Call us, alright?” said Serena, sounding slightly chocked up. “Let us know how it’s going out there.”

“Yeah, of course”, said Ash.

“I wanna hear how Greninja likes it in Alola!” Bonnie added firmly. “I bet it’s gonna be confused at first!”

“Take care, Ash”, Clemont said softly. “And remember that we are always happy to help.”

Ash smiled, wide and real. “Thank you, guys. You take care, too.” They hugged briefly, and Ash walked off to where Professor Kukui and the rest of the group were waiting for him. With a final glance back, they left Kalos, and everything that had happened there, behind.

 

It was late at night when they arrived on Melemele Island, and the journey back to Professor Kukui’s house went by in a weary, comfortable silence.

They stepped into the quiet house and Kukui turned on the lights, heading into the kitchen. Ash dropped his backpack in the middle of the floor and threw himself on the sofa, groaning in exhaustion. Pikachu crawled onto his stomach, and they listened as Kukui warmed up some microwavable dinners for them.

The silence made him feel strange, and it took him a moment to realize what was different.

“Where’s Rotom Dex, Professor?” he asked, sitting up.

The Professor glanced at him and chuckled nervously. “Oh… I turned it off. Just temporarily! I thought it might be slightly too curious and excited to be taken with me to Kalos.”

Ash briefly imagined Rotom Dex flying around in his hospital room, asking questions and demanding to collect data from him. He shuddered.

“Okay. Thanks.”

Ash poured a big pile of poke chow for his team and Kukui brought the warmed-up meals into the living room. They sat around the table, munching the food down hungrily. When Ash then yawned, so big it stretched out his whole body, Kukui joined in on it and it made them both giggle tiredly.

“Time for bed, it seems”, said Kukui with a smile.

Ash grinned. “Yeah.”

They left the empty boxes on the table and headed towards their beds.

“Good night, kid”, said Kukui, as they reached the ladder for the loft.

“Good night, Professor.”

They stood there for a moment, neither of them moving.

“Ash…” began Professor Kukui then, his expression odd. “Can I… can I hug you?”

Ash blinked, surprised. He nodded. “Of course.”

The Professor leaned down and wrapped his arms around him. His grip was gentle but firm, and his beard tickled Ash’s neck. Ash closed his eyes and hugged him back, something in his eyes suddenly making them burn. He sniffled, pressing his face against Kukui’s shoulder. It was solid and warm under him, and he never wanted to let go.

After they separated, Kukui patted his shoulder and smiled shakily.

“Thank you… um, good night, now.”

Ash nodded numbly. He climbed up the ladder and leaned down to peek over the edge. “Night, Professor Kukui.”

He shuffled over to his bed, still half made from the morning he had first felt Greninja reaching out to him, and fell face first into the blankets. Pikachu curled next to his head, and although his eyes were closed, through his Aura he felt the rest of his pokemon gathering on the carpet next to them.

He smiled, breathing out slowly.

He hadn’t slept so soundly in a long, long time.


End file.
